Among Monsters- An Undertale Novelization
by MetroidMan101
Summary: "One of us will be the prince of the world's future... guess we'll learn who soon enough. Have fun, my little monarch. I'll be watching." (A novelization/adaptation of Undertale's neutral and pacifist run)
1. Prologue: Once Upon a Time

**Among Monsters: An UNDERTALE Adaptation/Novelization**

 _Prologue: Once Upon a Time_

If there was one thing that humans could almost universally agree on, it was a simple warning: "Stay away from Mount Ebott."

Located in the northern wildlands of the largest kingdom on Earth, it towered above the surrounding areas and seemed to gaze down at the kingdom below. To the casual observer, it wasn't worth noting much. Unusual height aside, Ebott had no distinct physical features. Numerous outcroppings and steep paths lined the slopes of the mountain, with trees practically covering every other surface. There was no snow-capped peak, no sharp spire at the top with ominous storm clouds, not even an unusual mist floating through the air to signify that something was dangerous about it.

The prospect of venturing up Ebott was popularly discussed among children who were either curious as to what could be found there or daring each other to step foot on the base of the landmass. Naturally, none of them had the nerve to ever go too far up, thus awarding it even greater intrigue. Sometimes, adults would discuss the mysterious place with each other as well when not otherwise occupied. Many of them could be just as easily excited by the secrecy of it all as those younger than them, and countless rumors of what Ebott held floated around the kingdom. Traversing the mountain was ostensibly banned by the government, but as the laws prohibiting its exploration were hardly upheld, it was in essence public property. And yet, very few citizens living near Ebott would ever dare to seriously consider having a look for themselves.

Put simply, the reasoning for this was the legend surrounding the mountain. Those who had been exiled from the kingdom of men, so it was said, relocated to the sprawling caves beneath the earth through Mount Ebott and spent the rest of their days there. Terrified locals believed that to this day, the vengeful spirits of the "underlanders" were still down there, sealed away by a magical barrier but ready and willing to prey on those unlucky- or foolish- enough to enter their domain. Indeed, several people had already scaled the mountain and were never heard from again, their souls presumably devoured by the guardians of Ebott.

Had you asked a knowledgeable enough historian, or perhaps an open-minded politician of the day, about the validity of such rumors, he or she would likely describe them as being "not untrue."

In actuality, the residents of Mount Ebott's caves were said to be not humans but monsters, a species of bizarre creatures mostly comprised of magic energy and possessing various powers. These beings had once ruled the earth alongside humans but were eventually seen as too dangerous to be allowed to remain with them. A great war broke out, ending with human victory and the monsters being trapped underground. Despite the fear of retaliation from whatever still remained there,  
every so often someone was curious enough to venture up the slopes of Mount Ebott.

And so the story begins with a human child having finally reached the peak to explore, blissfully unaware of the large, gaping hole they were walking toward.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Short little prologue to start things off. Expect frequent updates!

Cover made using sprites obtained from The Spriter's Resource. Frisk was ripped by user UnderFail, while the soul and Flowey were ripped by user The Herp Derpinator. Credit goes to them. Undertale belongs to Toby "Radiation" Fox, of course.


	2. Chapter 1: Your Best Friend

PART ONE: FALLEN DOWN

Chapter 1: Your Best Friend

The human stirred groggily, somewhat amazed that they were still alive. While they didn't remember exactly when they had fallen, they did know one thing for sure: they must have been far, _far_ below the top of Mount Ebott.

Blinking to try and adjust their sight to the darkness they'd plunged into, the human took an initial glance at the surroundings. It was a cave, that was obvious due to the rocky walls and dirt-covered floor, and yet the ground appeared strangely soft. Squishy, almost. Upon closer inspection, they realized that they had landed on a very large bed of bright yellow flowers which had somehow cushioned their tremendous fall. The human decided that not questioning whether or not that was possible was in their favor; being thankful to have survived seemed more reasonable at the moment.

The human was no older than twelve, standing at 4'9" with a relatively tan skin tone and brown hair reaching straight down to their shoulders like a particularly long bowl cut. Naturally, it was rather messy from the plummet. All things considered, they were poorly equipped by this point. The human wore nothing aside from a blue shirt with purple stripes, a similar pair of pants, and a basic pair of gray sneakers. A bandage was stuck to their face where they'd received a cut during the initial climb of Mount Ebott. As far as assets for survival went, that was mostly the extent of it. The only equipment they had was a leather bag they'd found in the garbage before leaving for the mountain, and they carried no weapons aside from a longer-than-usual stick obtained on the way up. Needless to say, things were already not looking good.

They stared up into the darkness from which they had fallen. A distant speck of light showed that it was a much larger drop than was first assumed, which made them more nervous. They couldn't climb that high with their bare hands, and nothing seemed to be nearby that they could use otherwise. The only way to go, it seemed, was down a conspicuous path toward a purple-framed archway apparently leading further into the caves. Screwing up their courage, they proceeded.

The next room, if one could call such a place a room, was somehow even more baffling. Despite no clear light source being present, it wasn't as dark as it should have been; seemingly another small boost to the human's fortune. Other than a few scattered rocks here and there, it almost seemed neat, as if something had been maintaining it. Nonetheless, it was still a dull and colorless location save for one spot of what looked like bright green grass in the center. A single golden flower, just like the ones before, sprouted and stood about three feet tall. Behind the flower was another archway. As the human started to continue walking forward, the previously-immobile plant suddenly grew a pair of beady black eyes and what seemed to be a fully-functioning mouth. They sprang backward in terror at the sight, frantically brandishing their stick.

"Howdy!" the flower chirped in a high-pitched male voice, seemingly unfazed by the gesture. An easygoing grin was plastered onto its- the human hesitated to describe it as a face, still not quite believing what they were looking at. "I'm Flowey! Flowey the Flower!"

Finally snapping out of the initial shock (though no less confused), the human stared blankly at the creature before them. "Flowey" appeared to be sizing them up as well.

"Hmmm… you're new to the underground, aren'tcha? Golly, you must be so confused. Someone ought to teach you how things work around here! I guess little old me will have to do. Ready? Here we go!"

Before the human could do anything in response, Flowey's eyes flashed briefly and they felt a strange lightness in their chest. They looked down to see what was apparently a cartoonish red heart floating a few inches in front of them, white letters floating beside it with no visible source.

"LV 1. HP 20/20. EXP 0"

This raised more questions than answers, but they didn't have a chance to ask what was happening.

"See that heart? That is your soul, the very culmination of your being. Your soul starts off weak, but it can grow strong if you gain a lot of LV. What's LV stand for? Why, LOVE of course!"

The human noticed that the heart would move with them, always remaining fixed in its position. Flowey looked amused at the scene and continued to speak.

"You want some LOVE, don't you? You're gonna need a bit of EXP, or experience, first! Don't worry, I'll share some with you."

At this, he winked at the human. Five spinning white orbs emerged from somewhere behind the flower and hovered in a circle around him.

"Down here, LOVE is shared through little white… 'Friendliness Pellets.' They'll give you all the EXP you need to get started! Are you ready? Move around! Get as many as you can!"

With little idea of what else to do, and admittedly somewhat curious about Flowey's advice, the human watched the pellets slowly approach. When one was within arm's reach they extended a hand to try and grab it-

-upon which the Friendliness Pellet gained a sudden burst of speed and struck them directly in the red soul. The human felt a jolt of pain, seeing the number beside it change to "16/20." Within seconds the other four sped toward them and dealt further damage, leaving them with "1/20" HP and on all fours in front of Flowey, who now had a smug and gloating expression.

"Hahaha... you _idiot_. In this world, it's kill or BE killed! Why would ANYONE pass up an opportunity like this?!"

His voice, formerly light and friendly, had changed to a raspy growl that was punctuated by unsettling laughter. A sharp buzzing noise filled the air, and the human realized that at least thirty "Friendliness" Pellets were surrounding them, slowly getting closer to their critically weak soul. Flowey's face distorted into a very wide, toothy smile.

"DIE."

The human wanted to reach out and grab their stick for some kind of defense, but their soul was so highly damaged that just moving felt difficult. They squeezed their eyes shut at the flower's manic expression and waited for the end.

It didn't come. At the last second, a ring of fireballs materialized around the human and expanded outwards, destroying the Friendliness Pellets before they struck.


	3. Chapter 2: Guardian

Chapter 2: Guardian

They nervously inspected their body. No burns or cuts anywhere aside from the ones that Flowey had already inflicted. Why weren't they dead? Was their attacker pulling some kind of sick joke, toying with them to prolong the suffering as much as he could?

Apparently not, as the living flower looked just as confused as they did. He squinted at the human like he was wondering how they'd managed to generate fire for self-defense. A second passed before a faint light emitted from the doorway behind Flowey, growing larger until another fireball- this one at least three times the size of the ones that had shielded the human- slammed into him from behind. He was almost uprooted by the blast and turned to face the source of it with a scowl. Several other Friendliness Pellets appeared as he returned fire, but they too were incinerated.

After this second failed attack, Flowey shot the human one last sneer before sinking under the grass out of sight, leaving them alone with whatever was in the doorway. They were understandably terrified as an enormous black figure lumbered forward. An even worse creature, no doubt, here to finish off the weakened-

"Oh my… what a terrible creature, torturing such a poor, innocent youth…"

The human's fear seemed to stop in its tracks for a moment. Unlike the demonic flower they'd just encountered, this voice held no trace of malice. It sounded like that of an adult woman, and was warm and gentle. Worried, even.

As the speaker became illuminated by the ethereal light of the room, they were revealed to not be very monstrous-looking at all aside from easily being twice the child's height and having off-red eyes. She- somehow, they knew it was a female- had a mostly human-shaped body, but with large paws for hands and feet, and a head not unlike that of a goat, complete with stubby horns. Her entire body was covered in soft white fur, or at least they assumed so; she was wearing some kind of white-sleeved purple dress with a peculiar blue and white pattern in the center of it. Three triangles, surrounded by what looked like a winged circle.

She got closer to the human, who recalled what had just happened and tried to back away, though their low HP prevented them from doing much more than just cowering on the ground. The goat-woman had a compassionate expression.

"Ah, do not be afraid, my child. I am Toriel, caretaker of the Ruins. Are you all right?"

Apparently noticing their injuries, Toriel raised one of her hands, which emitted a soft green light. The human felt their pain lessen, and the numbers next to the soul returned to "20/20" (they'd figured out that it was a measure of health). They stared up at their savior, still not sure if they should trust anyone else.

"I pass through this place every day to see if anyone has fallen down," she explained. "You are the first human to come here in a very long time."

The human remembered hearing about a missing-persons report of someone who had tried climbing the mountain several years ago. Feeling increasingly nervous, they didn't say anything.

"You should not stay here, that flower might return soon… come! I will guide you through the catacombs to safety."

As no alternatives seemed to exist, they shakily stood up while not taking their eyes off of Toriel. Taking any more chances seemed suicidal to them by that point. Their soul, however, somehow decided that they weren't in any more danger at the moment and faded away along with its numbers.

"This way please, little one."

They grabbed the dropped stick and followed her out of Flowey's chamber, but had barely taken a step into the next room before being struck dumb with awe. It was considerably brighter due to several lanterns being strung up everywhere, and seemed less like a cave and more like the entrance to a temple. Smooth purple stone walls and a cobbled floor showed the much higher attention to detail that was paid to this area. The structure before them had an elevated platform leading to yet another doorway, with two short flights of white spiral staircases (also smooth stone) on either side to allow one to proceed. Strangely, quite a few red leaves were scattered about the ground even though no trees were to be seen, and flanking the doorway leading into this place- the Ruins, Toriel had called it- were two green vines.

Considering what the human had seen ever since they fell less than twenty minutes ago, "magic" was quickly becoming an acceptable answer to the strange things around them. Regardless, they felt a strange sensation deep in their chest as they looked at the entrance. Courage?

"Up here, my child," Toriel called from the top of the staircase, snapping the human out of their stupor. She didn't sound impatient in the slightest. They quickly joined her and began walking into the Ruins. Ahead of them was a semi-dark hallway.

"Oh goodness, where have my manners gone?" Toriel said aloud. "I haven't even asked you your name."

The human bit their lip in thought. Flowey hadn't exactly given off a good first impression of whatever lived down here, so trusting anyone else so soon was taking a big risk. And yet… Toriel's visage seemed nothing but benevolent, and she carried herself more like an overly-worried mother than an inviting "friend." They decided that, for the time being, she could be trusted with something as simple as their name. The human opened their mouth and spoke in a voice that was caught somewhere between male and female, but moderately high pitched and youthful nonetheless.

"…Frisk. I'm Frisk."

"Well, Frisk, I am delighted to meet you. Welcome to the underground."


	4. Chapter 3: The Ruins

Chapter 3: The Ruins

Their eyesight was gradually adjusting to the darkness, and although some light was still present they decided not to hope for things to get much brighter than that. Frisk occasionally stumbled on the slightly uneven floor as they followed Toriel (who would react with great concern each and every time), but kept their footing for the most part.

"So… what else is down here?"

The tall goat-woman turned to face them with a smile, but the pleasant look didn't quite reach her eyes, which seemed to quiver for some reason.

"Many things, little one. There are monsters like myself, and quite a few interesting places to visit as well. You should see my favorite bug catching spot sometime… the flower bed where you must have landed is also a nice place; I tend to it every day. It's quite relaxing, you know."

Toriel noticed she was rambling and abruptly stopped with a chuckle.

"Well, I'm sure you'll have a chance to look around once you have a nice meal."

Frisk was uncomfortably reminded of how hungry they were, having not eaten since before they climbed the mountain. Their attention was drawn to the next room they entered: a circular chamber with a door just as purple as the rest of what they'd seen so far. Notably, the door also featured the same pattern as the one on Toriel's dress, only in black. Six short, gray, cylindrical stones were arranged on the ground beside the door. What resembled a yellow lever was mounted on the wall

"Allow me to educate you in the operation of the Ruins," their guide said. She stepped on four specific stones- each of which sank into the ground like a button- and pulled the lever, standing back to reveal the door opening.

"The Ruins are full of puzzles, ancient fusions between diversions and doorkeys. One must solve them to move from room to room. Please adjust yourself to the sight of them."

Indeed, the very next room- rectangular in shape- contained another puzzle. A sign on the wall facing them read "stay on the path," which was a section of pale stone on the floor. Frisk noticed that it branched off at two points and lead to more yellow switches. Only one switch at the far end of the room didn't have a path leading to it.

"Go on, my child, can you solve this? I have made it relatively simple for you."

As they approached the first switch, they had to resist the urge to roll their eyes. Despite the sign already hinting at which ones to use, Toriel had written "please activate this switch" in bright yellow letters next to them, offering a good-natured but unnecessary attempt at advice. They solved the puzzle within a minute.

"Splendid!" Toriel exclaimed cheerfully. "I am proud of you, little one."

Frisk stayed quiet, not wanting to possibly offend a creature that could probably tear them apart if she so wished. The next room became accessible as a line of spikes sank into the floor once the switches were used.

"As a human living in the underground, monsters may attack you. You will need to be prepared for this situation."

Seeing the human become nervous, Toriel gave them a pat on the head.

"However, worry not! The process is simple. When you encounter a monster, you will enter a fight with them."

The chamber they entered next contained nothing but what looked like a training dummy, with an off-white stuffed cylinder for a body and a triangular head sporting two buttons for eyes.

"Strike up a friendly conversation and stall for time; I will come to resolve the conflict. Practice talking to the dummy, please."

Frisk looked at it uncertainly. Their soul appeared in front of them again, which made them wonder what exactly it considered a "fight." The dummy remained motionless.

"Um… hello. How are you?"

No response. The human was feeling more and more foolish, yet Toriel seemed very pleased with them. She moved on to the next room, leaving Frisk alone with the dummy. After a moment of blankly staring at it, they followed her.

"I guess it could be worse," Frisk thought inwardly as they proceeded. Aside from Flowey's ambush and Toriel's rather patronizing attitude, they were still in reasonably good condition. They wondered what other surprises this place held up ahead.

The answer, it seemed, was a colossal white frog that was just a bit shorter than them in the next room. Its bulging eyes focused on their soul, which had emerged again, and it started hopping toward them.


	5. Chapter 4: Independence

**Author's Note: If it's no trouble, feel free to leave a review! I want to know how I'm doing so far, so feedback would be nice. :)**

Chapter 4: Independence

Frisk narrowly dodged the frog as it tried to tackle them. It moved very slowly and was in no hurry to turn around to try again. They got their stick ready and struck when it sprang for a second attack. Despite its enormous size, the frog seemed to take considerable damage from the stick and backed away, sporting a large bruise on its side.

"What is this thing?!"

Their soul shimmered in response. The word "Check" appeared, then was replaced by some kind of identification for the monster.

"Froggit- Possesses low strength and durability. Life is difficult for this enemy."

Frisk looked the Froggit over again, as if seeing it in a new light. They suddenly wondered how they could have thought of it as menacing; the creature ambled around clumsily and had a rather vacant look in its eyes, or at least it did before they hit it with the stick. Now its expression seemed to be one of fear. Feeling a little guilty, Frisk thought back to what Toriel had said.

 _"Strike up a friendly conversation…"_

"H-hi there. You have really nice, um, legs?"

The Froggit just stared at them, apparently not understanding what they'd said. And yet, a moment later, a deep red blush appeared on its face in stark contrast to its white skin. It looked like it wanted to reply, but was interrupted as Toriel suddenly approached.

"Oh my- go on, shoo! Leave them alone!"

It practically withered under her disapproving glare and slunk away to the next room, giving Frisk one last glance. She sighed, then turned to them with a nervous look on her face.

"Are you hurt, little one? I am sorry for leaving you alone, the next puzzle was a tad too dangerous so I solved it for you-"

"I'm fine… where are we going anyway?"

Toriel smiled and ruffled Frisk's hair.

"To my home on the far side of the catacombs. We're taking a shortcut under the city; this path leads straight there as long as we don't stray. Come along, you'll see soon enough."

Their soul disappeared once again after the battle ended, and they trotted after their guide, gradually starting to trust her more. As nice as she seemed, though, Frisk still wanted to find a way back to the surface. Being stuck there forever didn't sound like their idea of fun.

"Could I ask something of you, my child?"

"Sure…?"

Toriel looked somewhere between worried and embarrassed.

"Do you think you could stay here for a little while? I have some business to attend to, and the road ahead is much too dangerous for you alone."

Eager to at last be alone for a bit, Frisk nodded enthusiastically.

"All right, I will trust you to take care of yourself… I know, I'll give you a cell phone in case you need anything."

They blinked in surprise. A phone? There were phones underground? Before Frisk could further question it, Toriel took one out of her pocket and gave it to them. It seemed to be very low-tech, having no features aside from the basic call function and a clock.

"My number is already listed. Be good, will you? I shall return as soon as I can."

With that, she proceeded down a branching route from the main path and was gone. Frisk stood there clutching the phone in one hand, the stick in the other. It didn't take very long, naturally, for them to get bored of waiting, and their curiosity for what else was in store got the best of them.

"She did say her house was at the end of this path… maybe there's a way out of here."

They carried on, whistling a tune softly. Getting to explore without Toriel's constant fussing excited them, and the next room already brought new discoveries. The Froggit from before was there, thankfully seeming to have partially healed its wound, and it gave Frisk a nod in greetings. Their soul didn't sense danger, and thus didn't engage in a fight.

"Good day, human," the monster croaked out. By that point they weren't too surprised to find that it could speak.

"Hi. Do you know where the way out is?"

It raised a webbed foot to point further down the path.

"The exit to the Ruins is beyond her home. Take caution, human, for there are more monsters in your way. I will tell my fellow Froggits to leave you be, however."

Well, at least one type of danger was taken care of. Frisk smiled appreciatively.

"In addition, I have some advice for you: monsters can be talked down from fighting, so please show us mercy. We are no match for the might of a human."

"Sure, I'll try not to hurt anyone else. Thanks again!"

The two parted ways, with Frisk exploring further. To their delight they found a bowl of "monster candy" in one room with a sign reading "please take one". They took three pieces, feeling somewhat guilty but having not eaten anything in hours, and chewed on one as their adventure continued. It was sweet and chewy, almost like taffy but with some unidentifiable fruity flavor.

True to the Froggit's word, none of its kind seemed interested in battling Frisk. Others tried to attack, but fortunately they weren't very hard to handle. Their soul kept track of their names and methods of finding a nonviolent solution to fights, which only made the trip smoother.

Whimsuns (flying, insect-like monsters that seemed utterly terrified of everything) and Moldsmals (gelatinous blobs with little care for fights) were easily ignored or appeased, and to Frisk's surprise the monsters they "befriended" would even give them what they assumed was money: some kind of yellow-tinted metal coins. They had no less than fifteen of them in their bag soon enough.

What puzzles they came across weren't much more challenging. For all of Toriel's fear, Frisk was making significant progress with little to no effort. In fact, the most they heard from her was at one point when she called to ask what their preference was between cinnamon and butterscotch. Frisk had answered the former, but just a minute later she'd called again, wondering if they disliked butterscotch. While the two were on the phone, the human took the opportunity to ask a bit about Toriel. She'd answered modestly, claiming to be "a silly old woman who worries too much." That was the extent of what she'd been willing to say.

Frisk arrived at a room with a wooden table that had a very large cheese wedge stuck to it. A small mouse was determinedly nibbling on the corner of it, discouraging them from trying to take any. Something about how focused the mouse was in its task almost inspired Frisk, and that same powerful feeling in their chest from earlier came back.

"I'll succeed too… I will get out of here."

For a few seconds, their soul reappeared with a box of white text beside it.

[SAVE FILE CREATED]


	6. Chapter 5: Determination

Chapter 5: Determination

Immediately following the room with the cheese was a brighter (either that, or Frisk's eyes were simply getting used to the semidarkness) H-shaped chamber with a red patch of, once again, leaves from an unknown source. There was something on top of the leaves, blocking Frisk's way forward. It was a large, white object that hovered in the air. Soft whimpering moans could be heard.

"What the…"

The thing turned around to reveal that it was a ghost. Round at the top and bumpy at the bottom, it looked like a bedsheet being worn by a small child, save for being somewhat transparent upon closer inspection. A hollow pair of black eyes and a small frown were the only features it seemed to have.

"Zzzzzzzz…"

It was pretending to sleep- and doing a miserable job of it, considering that it just kept saying the letter "z" out loud- in the hopes that Frisk would just go away. There was only one path forward though.

"H-hey, I have to get past."

"Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz…"

"Come on, move it!"

No reply. Shrugging their shoulders, Frisk charged directly at the ghost to try and run through it. Unfortunately, their soul seemed to think they were engaging it in battle and appeared in front of them. The "target" of their attack looked startled and began to shed large white tears that splattered over Frisk's soul. They let out a cry of pain; whatever substance the ghost was emitting burned like acid. Within a few seconds of that they saw their soul's HP hit "0/20." The heart shivered and split down the middle, then completely shattered as everything went dark for Frisk.

Somewhere in the crushing abyss of what they thought was death, a voice could be heard crying out. It wasn't Toriel, though, it was a man's voice, deep and almost booming with passion nonetheless.

"You're going to be all right! Chara! Stay determined…"

Frisk didn't know what was going on, who was speaking, or who "Chara" was, but they felt a strange swell of courage within them. They realized that their body still had feeling, their breath was restored, and their soul had regained its HP. Their sheer determination to live burned fiercely, and-

[SAVE FILE LOADED]

They opened their eyes to find that whatever darkness they'd entered was gone. In fact, they weren't even in the same place. Frisk was standing in front of the table with the cheese on it in the previous room. The mouse was still chewing on its snack, apparently not noticing them. Their soul faded away.

Frisk didn't know if this was a "second chance" or anything, but they weren't going to be reckless this time. They carefully went back into the ghost's chamber. Surprisingly, it was in its original position.

"Um… hello? Can you get out of the way please?"

"Zzzzz…"

Suspecting that the only way to get around the ghost was to enter a "fight" with it, Frisk approached and let their soul emerge from their chest. The Check command told them that the ghost's name was Napstablook, a monster with "not much of a sense of humor."

Napstablook shed more deadly tears that defied gravity and flew horizontally toward Frisk, who was careful to dodge them this time. His attacks seemed to carry a sense of resignation, like he didn't really care about fighting. After a moment, the tears abruptly stopped.

"Really not feelin' up to it right now, sorry…" the ghost droned out in a wispy voice.

Frisk wondered if Napstablook would move if he were cheered up. They gave him a patient smile and complimented his ability to float. He seemed affected enough to chuckle softly.

"Here, want to see something I can do…"

Tears flowed upwards from his eyes and formed a white top hat which rested on his head, giving him an almost goofy look.

"I call it 'Dapper Blook.' Do you like it…?"

"Yeah, it's great! Um, do you think you could please move?"

The battle came to an end, and Frisk's soul disappeared.

"Thanks… oh yeah, sorry for running right at you earlier. I didn't want to scare ya."

Napstablook frowned in confusion.

"What are you talking about? You didn't run at me before, I'm not scared. Heh… I usually come to the Ruins because there's nobody around… but today I met somebody nice. Oh… I'm rambling again. I'll get out of your way."

With that, the ghost vanished from sight, leaving a perplexed Frisk in his wake. Did reappearing before the battle somehow reset time as well? If it could work on command, they realized that they potentially had infinite attempts to escape. Frisk smiled confidently and continued. After defying time and death itself, what could stop them?

 **Author's Note: Short chapter, I know. Next one might come later on today, though, so stay tuned!**


	7. Chapter 6: Pressing Onward

Chapter 6: Pressing Onward

Napstablook's chamber featured a branching pathway. Frisk couldn't tell which the correct way forward was, so they decided on a whim to try the path to the right. While it lead to a dead end, it wasn't a total waste of time. Inside that room was a signpost reading "Spider Bake Sale: All proceeds go to real spiders," as well as a pair of large webs suspended under holes in the ceiling. Frisk noticed that they were both labeled and curiously approached one of them.

"Spider Donut- 7G."

Assuming that "G" was their currency, they pulled out seven of the coins they'd gained from earlier monster encounters and stuck them to the web. Within seconds, a few tiny spiders dropped from the hole above it to collect the coins and give Frisk a strange, gooey donut. It didn't exactly look pleasant, being a sickly purple in color and smelling odd, but they stuck it in their bag with the remaining candy, phone, and stick.

"Could be useful sometime…"

Bidding the spiders a slightly awkward thanks, Frisk returned to the crossroads and traveled to the left this time. Yet another signpost greeted them.

"Did you miss it? Spider bake sale down and to the right. Come and eat food made by spiders, for spiders, of spiders!"

They tried to push away that revelation of what their donut was made of and soldiered on. Four more Froggits- one of which was the size of an ant- were lazily hopping around in the room, but gave Frisk a short wave as they passed. Napstablook also made his return, laying on the ground in another room. He said hello before vanishing once again.

The welcome lull in activity was over, and the next few chambers proved to be much more difficult. Increasingly-elaborate puzzles constantly slowed down their progress, and the occasional worried call from Toriel did little to console them. Monsters such as Migosp (which resembled a beetle standing on two legs), Vegetoid (essentially a large carrot with a face that reminded Frisk uncomfortably of Flowey), and Loox (a bipedal demon-looking creature with a single large eye) were significantly harder to talk down from fighting than the ones before them, and on several occasions they simply had to run away from fights that got too hairy. Frisk had to rely on eating another piece of Monster Candy to keep their soul strong- it had helpfully informed them that the food underground would replenish HP.

Eventually they reached another fork in the path. The way left contained another patch of red leaves and a small building in the distance, while continuing straight led to another doorway. Deciding to go with the latter option for the time being, Frisk came across a lone Froggit.

"Toriel came out of here earlier, carrying some groceries," it said casually. "I didn't ask what they were for; we're all too intimidated to talk to her. Ribbit."

It made sense to them that all the small monsters living in the Ruins would be nervous around someone as large as Toriel, so they thought little of it. The next room was not a room after all, but some kind of observation point. Frisk could now see what they were traveling under- the main city. Countless tall buildings that looked like they were in relatively poor condition extended as far as the eye could see, yet aside from a group of Whimsun that fluttered in one of the desolate streets the whole place looked abandoned. The sight of it gave off several impressions: loneliness due to how remote it was, curiosity at why there were so few occupants, and slight pity for the monsters, which didn't seem so bad after all.

Sitting on the ground not far away from Frisk was what looked like a plastic knife, some kind of toy. It had a red, faded ribbon around its handle to improve its grip. They picked it up and put it into their bag under the repeated notion of "it could come in handy." The human casually returned to the diverging path and went the other way this time, wondering how far it was to Toriel's home.

As it turned out, not very far at all. The corridor led to a thin, black-barked tree with a large pile of red leaves at its base (Frisk assumed this was somehow the source of all the leaves they'd seen). Toriel stood behind the tree, holding her cell phone.

"…longer than expected, I should check…"

Before she could dial, she noticed Frisk standing a short distance away and hurriedly approached them.

"Oh! How did you get here, my child? Are you hurt? Please come with me, I will get you rested up."

Toriel led them by the hand toward the building, a square structure jutting out from the Ruin wall with nothing but a door and two windows at first glance. Light shone through the windows, actual light which made Frisk much more excited than they ever would have been about it.

The inside of Toriel's house was in heavy contrast to the Ruins outside- warm, yellow light and smooth wooden surfaces were a welcome change from the seemingly endless purple stone, and the air felt less stale. Furniture and potted plants were neatly arranged in several spots, books and decorations stacked in a tidy fashion, and a delicious smell wafted from down the hall. Frisk couldn't hold back a smile at their guide, who returned it.

"Surprise! It is a butterscotch-cinnamon pie. I thought we might celebrate your arrival, so I decided to refrain from making a snail pie. You will have a wonderful time living here…"

They didn't catch the last part, as they felt exhaustion setting in from the trip. Toriel gently picked Frisk up as sleep claimed them, carrying the human child to one of the home's bedrooms.


	8. Chapter 7: Home

Chapter 7: Home

 _Mount Ebott towered above them, a tremendous spike in the land that almost blocked out the sun despite it being noon. It looked to be a very long way up, but Frisk had come prepared- or at least they thought so. Their bag contained packaged food and plastic water bottles that could certainly last them the entire trip up and down the mountain. They knew their objective: get to the very peak and return with a branch from one of the red-leafed trees rumored to grow there. A fist clenched in determination, they began the long climb. Finally, they would get to prove their courage._

Frisk stirred from their slumber and tried to process everything. Judging by the soft and warm feeling beneath them, they seemed to be in a bed. For a moment they wondered if it had all been a dream, but the largely unfamiliar smell assured them otherwise. They were still in Toriel's house, curled up under a blanket in a twin-sized bed. Somewhere in the room, a music box chimed softly.

Despite a slight headache, Frisk was feeling excellent from the sleep. They got up and stretched, turning on a lamp (which apparently ran on magic, judging by its lack of a plug or batteries) to get a better view of the room. It was surprisingly large to them, with a soft orange rug about 11x11 covering the floor. A box filled with toys, several stuffed animals arranged on a shelf against one of the walls, and an empty photo frame covered in dust gave Frisk a rather strong impression of what this room was for. They noticed something in the corner: their bag of items, beside which sat a slice of Toriel's pie, wrapped in foil and sitting on a plate. Smiling, Frisk slid the pie into their bag in case of emergency.

Exiting into the hallway, they decided to have a look around. The neighboring room seemed to be Toriel's. It had a very large bed (understandable for her size), a bucket filled with snail shells, a bookshelf that looked like adding one more book would cause it to overflow, and a basic desk against one wall. The entire room was lit pale blue by a standing lamp. A specific book- her diary, apparently- was open on the desk with something circled in red ink. Curious, Frisk decided to peek at it.

"Why did the skeleton want a friend? Because she was feeling bonely."

The rest of the page contained jokes of a similar caliber, prompting them to stop reading. Frisk left the room again, curiosity satisfied, and proceeded down the hall until they reached the entrance. Their attention was immediately caught by a staircase leading down, but they could hear Toriel in the next room, so further snooping didn't sound like a good idea. They walked into the living room, where their host sat in front of the fireplace in an armchair. She held a book open, examining it with a pair of reading glasses.

"Up already? I hope you enjoyed your rest."

"Yeah, it was nice…"

Toriel smiled.

"I want you to know how happy I am to have company. There are so many books I want to share, so many places for you to see… I've even prepared a curriculum for your education. I have always wanted to be a teacher, you know…"

Frisk seemed to freeze at the last one. How long did she think they would stay there for?

"…perhaps that isn't very surprising. Oh, did you have a question?"

They cleared their throat awkwardly, not sure how exactly to phrase this.

"Uh… thanks a lot for the hospitality, but… I have to get home."

Her expression changed. Was it worry?

"What? This… this is your home now. Would you like to hear about this book? It is called '72 Uses for Snails-'"

"Please, Miss Toriel… how do I leave the Ruins?"

She stood up, closing the book and setting it down behind her along with the reading glasses. A strange, grim frown was etched onto her face.

"…I have to do something. Stay here."

With that, Toriel practically ran out of the room. Frisk could hear her going down the stairs. Beginning to feel nervous about what she had in store, they gave chase.

The descent led to another semi-dark tunnel that stretched away from the inviting warmth of the house. It was eerily silent, and the air was almost too still for comfort. Frisk pursued Toriel, who had slowed down to a walk. She noticed them following but didn't turn around.

"You wish to know how to return 'home,' do you not? Ahead of us lies the end to the Ruins, a one-way exit to the rest of the underground. I am going to destroy it."

"What?!"

"Nobody will ever be able to leave again. Now be a good child and go upstairs."

Her tone was incredibly icy, yet with a twinge of sadness.

"Y-you can't do this! I'm your prisoner now?"

"Every human that falls down here meets the same fate," she continued, "I have seen it again and again. They come. They leave. They die."

Frisk was, naturally, taken aback. Deep inside, their heart began racing.

"I'm not going to-"

"You naïve child. If you leave the ruins… they… Asgore… will kill you. I am only protecting you, do you understand? Go to your room. Do not try to stop me. This is your final warning."

The woman went deeper in, whereas Frisk stopped in their tracks. Their mind was in a frenzy, trying to figure out what to do. She may have had a point, they didn't really know what awaited them beyond the Ruins, and whoever Asgore was he sounded like someone to be avoided if Toriel was telling the truth…

They shook their head, brushing some long brown hair out of their face. Regardless of the danger, they had their special ability (assuming it worked like they thought it would). Frisk had no intention of being confined to the Ruins for the rest of their life, and nobody would stop them. Their soul appeared, ready for action.

[SAVE FILE UPDATED]

No matter what, they would find a way to escape.


	9. Chapter 8: Heartache

Chapter 8: Heartache

Frisk caught up to Toriel while she stood in front of a large door that, once again, had the same symbol as her dress. She turned to look at them.

"You want to leave so badly? Hmph. You are just like the others. Very well… prove yourself. Prove to me that you're strong enough to survive, human."

They steeled their nerves as Toriel swept a hand in front of her. Very large fireballs formed in midair and sped directly toward Frisk, crackling with energy. Acting completely on impulse, they grabbed the toy knife from their bag and slashed at the magic attacks. A foolish attempt to counter… except for the fact that the flames disappeared almost instantly as the plastic blade cut through them. Toriel's eyes narrowed.

"We don't have to fight! Please, just let me through!"

There was no response. Frisk had to jump to the side when another stream of fire was conjured. Seeing the doorway clear, they made a run for it but were cut off as Toriel shot more and more flaming energy. Additional pleas to not be forced to fight were fruitless.

 _"Maybe I could just knock her out or something?"_ they thought, growing desperate to end the battle quickly. A stray fireball collided with their soul, reducing its HP to 12/20 and sending a jolt of searing pain through their chest.

 _"She's strong… gotta be quick about this!"_

Frisk lunged toward her, swiping the toy knife at any more attacks that came their way. Finally pushing through to Toriel, they jumped as high as they could and swiped the flat side of the blade at her forehead, dragging the edge down the front of her dress as they fell to the ground.

It wasn't until Frisk had landed and backed away that they realized just how much damage they'd actually done. Despite being attacked by nothing more than a plastic knife, Toriel sported a very large wound on her head and was clutching at her stomach. Where the blade had connected there was a substantial rip in the material, and her fur underneath was ragged and torn. She dropped to her knees, gasping loudly.

"Ugh… y-you are stronger than I thought. Listen to me, small one… if you exit through this door, keep walking as far as you can. Eventually, you will find a way out. …Asgore… don't let Asgore take your soul. His plan cannot be allowed to succeed."

Toriel glanced up at Frisk with an attempt at a forgiving smile, which in no way whatsoever matched the look of pure horror plastered on their face.

"B-be good, my child… won't you…?"

Her body appeared to dissolve, leaving behind nothing but a white heart that floated upside-down where she had just been. Frisk flinched at the sight of her soul (for there was no mistaking it) and could do nothing but stare at it while a crack formed down its center. The heart split in two and shattered just like theirs had earlier.

As if to taunt Frisk, their own soul glowed in triumph. They saw the "LV" and "EXP" numbers next to its HP increase to "2" and "14," respectively. While they had no idea what any of that meant (aside from Flowey's description of LOVE and experience.), they hardly cared.

"I just killed her… I just killed her… o-oh god…"

How could such a small attack have hurt her that much?! They didn't want to harm her, they'd barely even put any force behind it! Were monsters truly that feeble compared to humans? Frisk somehow knew that she wasn't murderous in intent, and they'd tried to fight anyway. They wished for all the world that they could try again, and do it without having to harm her-

[SAVE FILE LOADED]

Frisk jumped in surprise as they found themselves in the hallway about twenty yards from where they just were. Toriel was there again, alive and approaching the door. Their soul was also reset to LV 1, EXP 0. They clenched their teeth in frustration at having forgotten about this "Save" ability and ran toward her. No mistakes this time.

"You want to leave so badly? Hmph. You are just like the others. Very well- hm? What's the matter with you? You look like you've seen a ghost…"

As Frisk engaged Toriel for the second time, they were careful to leave the toy knife in the bag and simply dodged her attacks (though not having anything to defend themselves with was much more difficult). They noticed her getting increasingly frustrated with their refusal to fight back, and her fireballs were becoming less and less frequent. Eventually, she stopped attacking altogether. A begging look was all over her visage.

"I know you want to go home, but… please, go upstairs now. I promise I will take good care of you here. We do not have much, but I think you can have a happy life."

"I'm sorry… I can't stay with you."

She seemed to choke back a sob. "Why are you making this so difficult?"

"I have to leave."

A moment of silence passed. Toriel wiped a tear from her eye and started to laugh.

"Pathetic, is it not? I cannot save even a single child… I know, you would just be unhappy trapped down here. The Ruins are quite small once you get used to them. It wouldn't be right for you to grow up here."

She sighed.

"My expectations, my loneliness, my fear… for you, my child, I will put them aside."

Frisk could tell that the battle was over. Their soul, which finally appeared to be acting on command, vanished.

"If you truly wish to leave, I will not stop you. However… please do not come back. I hope you understand."

Toriel kneeled down in front of Frisk and wrapped them in a tight hug.

"Goodbye, my child," she whispered softly. Soon enough, she stood up and departed back to her house.

"It's for the best," they said to themselves. "She'll be okay."

Frisk pushed the door open, revealing a dark path. They hurried down it until they came to a familiar-looking room. In fact, it looked exactly the same as the first chamber they'd entered while underground, complete with scattered rocks, a grassy patch with light…

…and a certain yellow flower, smugly grinning at them.

"Well, look at that. Seems like you decided to be a pacifist just to spite me. Clever, verrryyy clever. Feel proud of yourself, do ya?"

Frisk didn't give Flowey the satisfaction of a response.

"Yeah, congratulations on doing things your way. You didn't kill a single person! Oh, wait… _YES YOU DID_."

Their face turned to one of shock, which only made the twisted flower cackle to himself. He sneered.

"What, you think you're special? You aren't the only one who has the power to Save, y'know. The ability to play God, to change fate… hehehe, I used to be able to do that before you showed up here. Seems like your Determination overrides mine. Hope you can appreciate that…"

Frisk was feeling sick to their stomach at his rant.

"Seems like you're goin' down the peaceful route. Well, I wonder how long that will last. What happens if you meet a relentless killer? You'll die and you'll die and you'll die, that's what. And then? Will you kill out of frustration after enough attempts? Or will you give up on this world, letting ME control it again? One of us will be the prince of the world's future…"

His face contorted into a smile.

"…guess we'll learn who soon enough. Have fun, my little monarch. I'll be watching."

Flowey sank back into the ground and out of sight, shrieking with laughter as he went. Feeling incredibly unnerved, Frisk ran out of the chamber as fast as they could and didn't dare look back. They found the exit to the Ruins at last, pushing the door open.

 **End of Part One**

 **Author's Note: Thanks for reading so far! Part Two won't come for a few days, so I hope you'll be patient with me until then. Stay tuned!**


	10. Chapter 9: The Forest Path

**PART TWO: INTO THE DARKNESS**

Chapter 9: The Forest Path

Frisk wasn't sure what should have made them feel more cold- the second encounter with Flowey, or the fact that they found themselves standing in what appeared to be snow coming up to their ankles. With the entrance to the Ruins sealing itself behind them, they were facing a long, shadowed path flanked on both sides by countless tall trees. Directly to their left was a large bush covered in snow, inconspicuous save for a strange black object nestled somewhere in the branches. Frisk felt more uneasy upon discovering that it was some kind of security camera.

"Nowhere else to go but forward…"

As they started walking down the path through the forest, they noticed two things: first that the environment itself seemed magical judging by how the trees grew without sunlight (it was even darker than the Ruins) and the snow wasn't actually that cold, and second that there was absolutely no sound other than their own crunching footsteps. It felt like they were lost in a void, and the inviting warmth of Toriel's house grew further away with each step.

Frisk almost stumbled on a large fallen branch sitting directly in front of them on the path. They considered replacing the stick they had with this much more durable-looking tool, but it was far too heavy to lift. Sighing, they stepped over it and continued on their way. A loud snapping sound from behind them caught their attention. Frisk turned around to see that the branch had been reduced to little more than splinters. By what, they didn't know. Staying there to find out didn't seem like a smart idea, so they picked up their speed down the path.

Their breath was becoming uneven in fright, which definitely wasn't helped by the strange, monotonous humming sound emanating from the forest. They found the silence from before to be preferable, to say the least. Frisk stole a glance over their shoulder and noticed a second trail of footprints beside theirs a ways back, with a shadowy figure they couldn't quite make out darting into the trees to hide.

Now feeling utterly terrified, they broke out into a run down the path. The sound of crunching snow right on their heels indicated that whatever was following them hadn't gone away. They came to a stop upon reaching a deep hole across the trail, a narrow wooden bridge extending over it. What looked like a large gate was erected on the side of the hole closest to them, its bars far apart enough to allow them to pass.

 _"Human."_

The voice was soft, almost like a mumble, yet rang clearly in Frisk's ears. It rumbled in a deep baritone sound, sending a shiver down their spine. Someone- or something- was standing less than a yard behind them.

 _"Don't you know how to greet a new pal? Turn around and shake my hand…"_

Frisk slowly turned on the spot to face the speaker. Their eyes were practically squeezed shut in terror, so they didn't get a very good look. Whoever it was held out a hand for them. Trembling hard, Frisk reached out and grabbed it-

-only to hear a very loud, wet "flurp" that quickly transitioned into a high-pitched wheeze. They were touching something soft and rubbery that squished inwards with force. Frisk opened their eyes all the way in confusion.

"hehehe, the old whoopee cushion in the hand trick. it's ALWAYS funny."

The monster was just a little taller than them, but somewhat wide. A blue jacket covered his arms and most of his body, unzipped in the front to reveal a simple white shirt underneath. He was wearing black shorts with two white stripes traveling down each leg, and his feet were nestled in pink, fuzzy slippers. His hands were deep in his jacket pockets, but a pair of teal gloves poked out enough for them to see. The whole outfit was somewhat mismatched, not that he seemed to care.

With so much clothing, it took Frisk a moment to realize that this monster was a skeleton. His skull was, when viewed from the front, shaped like two ovals overlapping one another, giving him a rather portly appearance. Even stranger was his face. While it was otherwise normal for a skeleton, with dark sockets where a living human's eyes and nose would be, something was almost cartoonish about him. His mouth seemed permanently stuck in a wide smile, so that when he spoke the words hummed from between his teeth. Meanwhile, his eyes- despite being little more than holes in his skull- were able to shrink and reshape themselves as if he had eyelids. A pair of small white lights, apparently his pupils, shone out from somewhere in the darkness of his skull. The skeleton laughed again and nodded at Frisk, speaking in a voice that was indeed deep but now sounded more laid-back and casual.

"anyways, you're a human, right? that's hilarious. i'm sans. sans the skeleton."

"Uh-"

"i'm actually supposed to be on watch for humans right now. but… y'know… i don't really care about capturing anybody."

Capture? Monsters had a job to capture humans? Toriel had warned them to be cautious, but they didn't imagine they'd meet resistance right outside the Ruins…

"now my brother, papyrus… he's a human-hunting FANATIC."

Frisk swallowed nervously. Sans could easily have been lying about not caring. Was he waiting for "Papyrus" to arrive and help? The skeleton looked past them across the bridge.

"hey, actually, i think that's him over there. you'd better hide. i have an idea… follow me through this gate thingy. yeah, go right on through. my bro made the bars too wide to stop anybody."

Before they could say anything, Sans had grabbed them by the wrist and was gently pulling them along with him.

 **Author's Note: And here's the beginning of Part Two! Thanks for your patience for a few days; expect frequent updates again!**


	11. Chapter 10: Bone-Chilling Encounter

Chapter 10: Bone-Chilling Encounter

Frisk jerked free of his grasp when they reached a small clearing in the forest.

"quick," Sans said with a chuckle, "behind that conveniently-shaped lamp."

They noticed the object in question. It stood at exactly the same height as Frisk, and its shade was bumped in such a way that it matched the contour of their face perfectly. Standing behind it, the lamp completely hid Frisk from view as another skeleton stomped into the clearing with Sans.

This one- evidently Papyrus- quite sharply contrasted from his brother. He was freakishly tall, almost nine feet (he looked a bit taller than Toriel, even), and while Sans was more on the wide side, Papyrus was extremely lanky. His torso was thin, and his arms and legs were proportional in length to his height. Furthermore, unlike the warm winter clothing of his brother, he wore some kind of white armor around his ribcage and pelvis, red gloves and matching boots, and a flowing red cape that only came down to about his waist. His face seemed capable of the same expressional contortions as Sans. The difference between the two was that Papyrus' eye sockets weren't as large and didn't have white lights inside. His mouth also didn't look frozen into a smile. In fact, he appeared quite impatient.

"sup, bro?"

"YOU KNOW WHAT 'SUP,' BROTHER!" he cried in a much higher-pitched and cackling voice that made Frisk wonder if these two were really related at all. "IT'S BEEN EIGHT DAYS AND YOU STILL HAVEN'T RECALIBRATED. YOUR. PUZZLES! YOU JUST HANG AROUND OUTSIDE YOUR STATION!"

Papyrus didn't seem to notice anything strange about the lamp, or even question why it was there. He was too busy chastising Sans for his apparent laziness.

"WHAT ARE YOU EVEN DOING RIGHT NOW?"

"staring at this lamp. it's really cool. do you wanna look?"

Frisk stifled a gasp. Was Sans about to give them away?

"NO! I DON'T HAVE TIME FOR THAT!" he exclaimed, stomping a foot. "WHAT IF A HUMAN COMES THROUGH HERE?! I WANT TO BE READY! I WILL BE THE ONE! I _MUST_ BE THE ONE!"

His almost pompous voice didn't give off the impression that he was dangerous, but Frisk was nervous about his focus on his task.

"I WILL CAPTURE A HUMAN! THEN I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL GET ALL THE THINGS I UTTERLY DESERVE!"

Papyrus folded his arms and posed heroically.

"RESPECT… RECOGNITION… I WILL FINALLY GET TO JOIN THE ROYAL GUARD! PEOPLE WILL ASK TO BE MY, 'FRIEND?'"

Frisk heard a change in his tone of voice at the word "friend," like he wasn't entirely sure about what he was saying. The difference didn't last long, however.

"I SHALL BATHE IN SHOWERS OF KISSES EVERY MORNING!"

"hm… maybe this lamp will help you."

"SANS! YOU ARE NOT HELPING! ALL _YOU_ DO IS SIT AND BOONDOGGLE! YOU GET LAZIER AND LAZIER EVERY DAY!"

They heard Sans chuckle to himself.

"hey, take it easy. i've gotten a **ton** of work done today."

"WHAT DID YOU-"

"a skele- **ton**."

Papyrus reacted to the pun with an outraged groan (that Frisk wanted to share to some degree, even if they did giggle a bit).

"come on. i see you're smiling."

"I AM, AND I HATE IT. UGH… WHY DOES SOMEONE AS GREAT AS ME HAVE TO WORK SO HARD FOR SOME RECOGNITION?"

Sans was grinning again.

"hey, sounds like you're really workin' yourself… down to the bone."

His brother let out an exasperated sigh and turned around to walk away.

"I WILL ATTEND TO MY PUZZLES NOW. AS FOR YOUR WORK, PUT A LITTLE MORE… _BACKBONE_ INTO IT! NYEHEHEHEHEHEHEHE!"

Papyrus left the clearing, with Sans waving goodbye to him.

"okay, you can come out now."

Frisk stepped away from the lamp and shook off some snow that had gathered on their shoes from standing there during the encounter.

"you oughta get going, he might come back. and if he does… you'll hafta sit through more of my hilarious jokes."

"Didn't he just go this way? Won't I run into him again?"

Sans waved a hand dismissively.

"you'll be fine, relax. he's not dangerous. even if he tries to be..."

As they began to walk, he called out again.

"oh, can i ask a favor? my bro's been feeling kinda down lately. he's never seen a human before, so you might just make his day. i'll make sure nothing bad happens."

"…I… guess I could let him see me…"

"thanks a million, i'll be up ahead."

Despite that, he walked in the opposite direction, down the way they'd first came from. Frisk wondered where he was going but didn't want to stay there too long. In the far end of the clearing was some kind of desk, apparently Sans' station as the first line of defense for the underground (given his general attitude, Frisk wasn't sure how effective he would be). They detected a strange smell wafting from it, which on closer inspection was revealed to be a collection of half-empty bottles of ketchup, mustard, and relish. Nothing else.

Shrugging at the two confusing new faces, they just continued on their way.


	12. Chapter 11: Snowy

Chapter 11: Snowy

They began to find the still and cool air around them very pleasant, at least compared to the stuffiness of the Ruins. Frisk was feeling more confident than before, and their soul placed another "Save Point" just outside of the clearing where they'd met Sans. They still couldn't "Save" at will, but at least understanding it was easier now.

Their thoughts returned to what Flowey had said as they walked along the path. He claimed to know about how they'd used their "determination" to reset and battle Toriel again, whereas she and Napstablook acted like nothing had happened in their respective encounters. He'd also said that they had the potential to dictate the future of the world… could such a great power truly rest on their shoulders? And why did their "EXP and LOVE" only increase when they killed Toriel? Shouldn't it have been affected by all the monsters they befriended or were at least nice to? They had a sinking feeling that something much bigger than they could comprehend was taking place.

As far as they were concerned, though, their ultimate goal was to escape the underground and leave all that complicated business behind.

Frisk came across a wooden chest sitting unattended on the side of the path. A sign next to it cleared up its purpose.

"This is a box. You can put items in or take them out. Other boxes like this can be found throughout the kingdom, and your items will be transferred between boxes. Sincerely, a box lover."

Intrigued, they opened the box to find nothing inside but a worn, pink glove. It didn't seem like a winter glove though, more like the kind of thing one would use to hit a punching bag. Their soul appeared and labeled it as a good defensive weapon. Frisk removed the glove from the box, sliding it onto their left hand. At the very least it would keep them a little warmer. They also took the time to put the toy knife, the spider donut, and one piece of monster candy in the box. Once they'd finished, their bag contained the stick (which they held onto in case they needed to scare something off without seriously damaging it), the slice of Toriel's pie (still hot thanks to her having used fire magic to bake it), one final piece of monster candy, and the cell phone.

Frisk paused upon seeing that last item. They withdrew it from the bag, staring at it for a second. Out of curiosity they dialed Toriel's number, if only to say hello. There was no answer. Sighing, they just kept walking.

The path was reasonably comfortable to travel. Only one monster tried to attack- a large birdlike creature that appeared to be comprised of ice crystals, known as Snowdrake according to their soul's Check function- and even then he seemed more interested in just making puns about snow than fighting. Frisk had laughed good-naturedly at one of the puns, after which Snowdrake ran off, cheering in delight that "Dad was wrong." They felt a strange twinge at the sound of that but moved on anyway, happy to have made the monster feel good. Still, there was no change to their soul's LOVE…

After another few minutes of walking, they found Papyrus standing in the path with his back to them. Sans was there too, speaking with his brother.

"Huh…? How did he get here before me?"

"SO, AS I WAS SAYING ABOUT UNDYNE-"

Both skeletons noticed Frisk standing there (with Sans giving them a short wink), then quickly turned around again to whisper- very loudly- with one another.

"OH MY GOD! SANS, IS THAT… A HUMAN?!"

"uh… actually, i think that's a rock."

Frisk saw that there was indeed a snow-covered rock sitting a few feet behind them, but stared at Papyrus in confusion. He looked disappointed and didn't seem to notice them anymore.

"OH."

Sans' grin seemed to widen.

"hey, what's that in front of the rock?"

This time, his eyes were locked onto Frisk. He looked ecstatic.

"OH MY GOD! IS… IS THAT A HUMAN?"

"yes."

"OH MY GOD!"

Papyrus seemed like he was ready to jump for joy. His fists were tightly clenched and held up in front of his chin.

"SANS! I FINALLY DID IT! UNDYNE WILL… I'M GONNA… I'LL BE SO… POPULAR! POPULAR! POPULAR!"

He seemed to regain his composure and turned back toward Frisk, clearing his "throat."

"HUMAN!" he declared firmly, looking like he was trying not to seem too excited. "YOU SHALL NOT PASS THIS AREA! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL STOP YOU! I WILL THEN CAPTURE YOU! YOU WILL BE DELIVERED TO THE CAPITAL! THEN… THEN…!"

Papyrus deflated a little.

"I'M NOT SURE WHAT'S NEXT. IN ANY CASE! CONTINUE… ONLY IF YOU DARE! NYE HEH HEH HEH!"

He did an about-face and ran off, presumably to get ready. Frisk wasn't sure if they should have felt scared or not. Sans, meanwhile, had a bigger smile on his face.

"that went well. don't sweat it, kid. i'll keep an eyesocket out for ya."

With that, he followed his brother away. They stood there perplexed for a few seconds before walking after the two skeletons.


	13. Chapter 12: Adventures in the Woods

Chapter 12: Adventures in the Woods

Frisk came across Papyrus' station (a very large cardboard box with a hole cut in the side) shortly after. It was unmistakably his because of the narration written on the side:

"YOU OBSERVE THE WELL-CRAFTED SENTRY STATION. 'WHO COULD HAVE BUILT THIS,' YOU PONDER… WHY, I BET IT WAS THAT VERY FAMOUS ROYAL GUARDSMAN! (NOTE: NOT YET A VERY FAMOUS ROYAL GUARDSMAN)"

Sans was right. Papyrus seemed less and less menacing every second.

"Heh…"

Continuing straight through the snowy forest path, Frisk spotted yet another sentry station. This one was manned by a tall doglike creature- correction, a dog. It was without uncertainty a white dog standing on its hind legs. He wore a black bandanna, a pink tank-top with a smiling puppy face on it, and a pair of tan, spotted pants. A dog treat hung from the corner of his mouth like a cigarette. The sentry had a suspicious look in his eyes, and brandished a pair of knives in Frisk's direction. They were practically frozen to the spot.

"Did something move?" he growled, "Was it my imagination? I hate only being able to see moving things… well, if something IS moving, like a human, I'll be sure it never moves again!"

Frisk's soul emerged, identifying the sentry as "Doggo." He cautiously approached them with a knife pointed in their direction, yet he didn't seem to be able to see anything. As long as they didn't move, Frisk couldn't be detected. Doggo's knife blade suddenly turned blue as he got closer, his nostrils flaring angrily. They didn't move a muscle, he would see them if they did, but that weapon was coming dangerously close to their soul-

The blade slid directly through the floating heart. But nothing happened.

Frisk stared in amazement, trying not to gasp or breathe too heavily as Doggo continued his inspection. For some reason, his blue blade wasn't harming them. He pulled the knife away and turned to prowl elsewhere. As he did, Frisk's hand brushed against his swaying tail. The sentry yelped loudly and spun to face them, looking frantically around the area.

"S-s-something pet me… something that isn't m-m-moving… I'm gonna need more dog treats for this."

He dove back into his station and was out of sight. Frisk wasted no time in rushing past before he returned.

"What was that about?"

Another clearing was up ahead, this time with a branching path. More interestingly, though, was that Sans was there by himself.

"heya, nice to see you. lemme give ya some advice."

"All right?"

"my brother has a very special attack. if you see a blue attack, don't move and it won't hurt you."

He smiled at them (not surprising; he seemed to always smile) and continued.

"here's an easy way to remember it: imagine a stop sign. when you see one, you stop, right? stop signs are red. so when you're fighting, just think of blue stop signs."

"Uh… sure..."

Frisk looked at the options for moving on.

"Hey Sans, which way should I go?"

When they turned back, he was gone. No footprints, no rustling leaves in the forest to show he had went through there, nothing at all. It was like he'd simply vanished into thin air.

"I couldn't have imagined that he was there…"

Trying to forget about it, Frisk slid across an icy patch on the ground to a sign posted in the center of the clearing.

"North: Ice. West: Ice. South: Ice. East: Snowdin Town... and ice."

"East it is, then…"

Though they didn't like to think about it, they remembered what Toriel had said the first time they fought, right before she died. Keep walking as far as they could…

No sense in dawdling, in that case.

Frisk took the eastern path and soon came across both of the skeleton brothers, the enigma of how Sans had just disappeared still fresh in their mind. The two stood on the other side of a large blueish patch of snow on the ground.

"YOU'RE SO LAZY! YOU WERE NAPPING ALL NIGHT!"

"i think that's called… sleeping."

"EXCUSES, EXCUSES!"

They turned to see Frisk.

"OH HO! THE HUMAN ARRIVES! IN ORDER TO STOP YOU, MY BROTHER AND I HAVE CREATED SOME PUZZLES! I THINK YOU WILL FIND THIS ONE… QUITE SHOCKING! BEHOLD, THE INVISIBLE ELECTRICITY MAZE! WHEN YOU TOUCH ITS WALLS…"

He held out a small green sphere, showing it to them.

"THIS ORB WILL DELIVER A MIGHTY ZAP. SOUND FUN? BECAUSE, THE AMOUNT OF FUN YOU WILL PROBABLY HAVE… IS NOT A VERY HIGH AMOUNT I THINK!"

Feeling a bit nervous, Frisk took a step forward and immediately collided with something they couldn't see. On the other side of the invisible maze, Papyrus let out a startled cry as the orb in his hand electrocuted him. He started stomping his foot in rage.

"SANS! WHAT DID YOU DO?!"

"actually, i think the human has to hold the orb for this."

"OH. OKAY."

Still cackling to himself, the taller skeleton began navigating the maze until he was directly in front of Frisk, handing them the green sphere. Papyrus ran back through, leaving a trail of footprints in his wake.

"TRY IT NOW!"

Frisk just followed the path he left behind and got through the maze unharmed.

"INCREDIBLE! YOU SLIPPERY SNAIL! YOU SOLVED IT SO EASILY… TOO EASILY! HOWEVER! THE NEXT PUZZLE WILL NOT BE EASY!"

He gestured to the shorter skeleton beside him.

"IT IS DESIGNED BY MY BROTHER, SANS! YOU WILL SURELY BE CONFOUNDED! I KNOW I AM!"

Papyrus ran away, clearly pleased with himself.


	14. Chapter 13: Traits

Chapter 13: Traits

 **Author's Note: Is it just me, or does FanFiction say that I upload new chapters to this a few days** ** _before_** **I actually upload them? The date seems to screw up on this for some reason... is it happening to anyone else?**

This time, Sans remained with the human as they walked after Papyrus.

"hey, thanks a lot… my brother seems like he's having fun."

"Is he always like this?"

"all the time," the skeleton replied with a wink. "by the way, did you see that weird outfit he's wearing?"

Frisk nodded. It certainly didn't look like casual wear, and they'd just assumed it was part of his uniform as a sentry.

"we made that a few weeks ago for a costume party," Sans explained. "he hasn't worn anything else since. keeps calling it his 'battle body.' man… isn't my brother cool?"

The human didn't quite know what to think. They walked past a blue-furred rabbit monster who appeared to be selling "Nice Cream." Frisk, deciding that having more food on hand would be a good idea, bought a cup of it and stuck it in their bag.

"i've been thinkin' of selling treats too," their skeletal companion commented as they kept going. "want some fried snow? it's just 50G."

They currently had 36G, so they politely declined.

"what? you don't have the money? that's okay. i don't have any snow."

Sans pocketed his hands once they approached what looked like a mini-golf course made of blue-tinted snow and ice patches.

"here, roll up a few snowballs and try kicking 'em into that hole over there. you'll get some money depending on your strategy."

"Shouldn't I just keep moving?"

"can't get through the underground with just 36G, can ya? besides, my puzzle's up ahead and i need some time to get it ready. see you soon, kid."

What he'd just said rang through their mind a few times as he walked off. "Get through the underground?" Was he trying to help them escape? They'd have to ask him later on. In the meantime, Frisk stared at the course in front of them. Forming a snowball, they did as told and kicked it along the ground. By staying close to the ball as it moved, navigating it to the designated goal (which appeared to go very deep into the ground) didn't take long, and once the ball vanished a blue flag extended out of the hole along with 2G. There was a note on the flagpole.

"Hopping and twirling, your original style pulled you through."

Curious to see how the game reacted to a different play style (and wondering how much money they could earn), Frisk made a new ball and went through it as slowly and accurately as they could. Their reward was 1G and a green flag.

"Your concern and care for the ball led you to a delicious victory."

They repeated the game a few times using various strategies. With different ones, a new flag would appear.

"Even when you felt trapped, you paid careful attention and managed to reach the end."

"Your sure-fire accuracy won the day."

"You are the kind of person who rushes fist-first through obstacles."

"You waited until the ball teetered on the edge of its goal before striking it in."

By the end, Frisk had obtained a total of 67G. The last flag was red, and it had the most interesting note in their opinion.

"Integrity. Kindness. Perseverance. Justice. Bravery. Patience. Using these, you were able to win 'Ball Game.'"

Figuring that they'd spent enough time there, they put the money they'd earned in the bag. As Frisk left, though, they couldn't shake the feeling that those flags had meant something.

Sans and Papyrus were waiting for them further up the trail. Whatever puzzle the former had mentioned was nowhere in sight, unless it was another invisible maze.

"HUMAN! I HOPE YOU'RE READY FOR…"

The taller skeleton glared at his brother.

"WHERE'S THE PUZZLE?!"

"right there on the ground," Sans replied calmly. "trust me, there's no WAY they'll figure this one out."

Frisk looked down to see a sheet of paper sitting in the snow. Upon closer inspection, it was revealed to be nothing more than a word search. A very easy one at that. There wasn't even a pencil included to solve it. They looked back up at the two skeletons, confused.

"SANS, THAT DIDN'T DO ANYTHING!"

"whoops. knew i should've used today's crossword instead. it was way harder."

"CROSSWORD?! YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT. JUNIOR JUMBLE IS CLEARLY MORE CHALLENGING! AND I WOULD KNOW, I ONLY BRAVE THE CHALLENGINGEST OF PUZZLES!"

"like how yesterday you tried to 'solve' the horoscope?"

"I KEEP TELLING YOU, THAT ONE ISN'T FAIR- WAIT, THE HUMAN IS ESCAPING!"

While the two bickered (a mostly one-sided bickering), Frisk had just walked between them and carried on. Papyrus shook a gloved fist at them.

"YOU WIN THIS ROUND, HUMAN! LET'S GO SANS, WE HAVE MORE PUZZLES TO SET UP!"

He sped off, dragging his brother behind him as they took a path through the woods. The human, meanwhile, just stayed true to their course and kept moving, wondering how much longer it would be before they reached Snowdin Town.


	15. Chapter 14: Trials of Papyrus

Chapter 14: Trials of Papyrus

Frisk's path was hardly growing more treacherous. Immediately after separating from the skeleton brothers, they'd come across a plate of stone-cold spaghetti sitting on a table next to an unplugged microwave with no power source. A letter from Papyrus on the side made it very clear why the plate was there:

"HUMAN, PLEASE ENJOY THIS SPAGHETTI. LITTLE DO YOU REALIZE… IT IS A TRAP MEANT TO ENTICE YOU! YOU'LL BE SO BUSY EATING THAT YOU WON'T NOTICE YOU AREN'T PROGRESSING! JAPED ONCE AGAIN BY THE GREAT PAPYRUS!"

"He likes spaghetti? Didn't think skeletons could eat food…"

The next puzzle was much more dangerous, but not in its solution; it was merely finding a switch buried in snow to lower a bed of spikes blocking the way forward. What made it challenging was that three Royal Guards (who happened to be more white-furred dogs) were patrolling the area.

One of them, known as Lesser Dog according to Frisk's soul, dropped its weapons and simply tried to playfully tackle them to the ground (which would have been fine if not for the heavy suit of armor it wore), apparently not even realizing that its job was to capture humans. It was quickly discouraged from fighting with a soft pet on the head, and ran off somewhere with its neck stretching out to an absurd length for some reason.

The other two worked as a team. Dogamy and Dogaressa- as the soul called them- wore black robes with hoods and had poor eyesight but strong senses of smell, and they both wielded very dangerous-looking axes. Judging by how they lovingly talked to each other while defending their post, it was clear that the two were new mates. Frisk watched them from a distance, thinking of a plan (as well as realizing then that many of the monsters they'd encountered were actually quite cute when not in battle).

"Maybe I can trick 'em…"

They rolled around in the snowy bushes lining the forest a few times until their scent had become masked. Frisk slowly approached the two canine sentries, who tensed up upon smelling them.

"What's that smell…?" Dogaressa said aloud.

Her mate gripped his axe and started forward. The blade flashed blue, just like Doggo's had.

"It's some kind of weird puppy, I think. What're you doing out here?"

They stayed motionless. Frisk's soul, just as Sans had said, wasn't harmed when the blue axe slid through it. They nervously replied.

"I-I want to get to Snowdin Town… I think two skeletons went this way, I've been following them."

The two dogs shared a glance.

"What, the trainee and his brother?"

"Wonder where they found a lost puppy… wait a second…"

Dogaressa sniffed Frisk again.

"You're- you're a human!"

They had to jump backwards as the guards immediately began swinging their axes. Positioning themselves on both sides of the child, they rapidly approached and prepared to strike again. Frisk's mind was racing, recalling what had happened to the previous two dogs they'd encountered upon being pet.

"We've got you now!" the guards cried, raising their axes in sync.

Once they were close enough, Frisk lunged at Dogamy and rubbed their hands on his sides. He trembled and wagged his tail quickly, abandoning the attempt to attack.

"Wow! You must be a puppy if you want to pet us!"

"Hey, come on, pet me too!"

Dogaressa had ceased hostility as well and ran up to them, holding her head forward. Frisk gladly pet her as well to satisfy them both.

"Imagine that! Dogs can pet dogs! Dogamy, we have to tell the others about this!"

"Yeah, we do! Go ahead, little puppy, Snowdin's not too far away. Stay on the trail and you'll be fine."

They nodded. "I will, thanks."

As the two guards ran off, overjoyed at their "discovery," Frisk couldn't help but smile a bit. Monsters seemed like nice people- if one could get through to them, anyway. With the path clear, they were able to continue on.

Another simple puzzle greeted them: two screens on the ground were marked with blue X's, which turned into red circles and then green triangles when stepped on. According to a sign posted nearby, the solution was to change the X's to circles and press a switch near the sign. They solved it easily, and another spiky barrier (which the Royal Guard seemed to enjoy) lowered for them. Papyrus was standing on the other side of the spikes, and he turned around to face Frisk at the sound of the puzzle being completed.

"WHAT?! HOW DID YOU AVOID MY TRAP? AND MORE IMPORTANTLY… IS THERE ANY LEFT FOR ME?"

"I… didn't eat any of it."

Surprisingly, he didn't look upset.

"REALLY? WOWIE… YOU RESISTED THE FLAVOR OF MY HOMECOOKED PASTA… JUST SO YOU COULD SHARE IT WITH ME?"

"That's not what I-"

"WELL, FRET NOT HUMAN! I, MASTER CHEF PAPYRUS, WILL MAKE ALL THE PASTA YOU COULD EVER WANT! AFTER YOUR CAPTURE, ANYWAY! HEH HEH HEH HEH NYEH! COME ALONG, THE NEXT PUZZLE IS THIS WAY!"

Walking alongside Papyrus was a strange experience for Frisk. Despite his boasts of planning to defeat them, he seemed to only want to do so by outsmarting them with a puzzle. He probably could have just grabbed them; his arms were certainly long enough. Yet as they proceeded closer to Snowdin Town the tall skeleton made no aggressive motions at all. In fact, he was actually making friendly conversation about his brother's new sock collection (which was actually just a pile of socks that he didn't feel like putting away) and rhetorically asking what he'd do "WITHOUT SUCH A COOL GUY TO LOOK AFTER HIM."

Papyrus was apparently growing outright fond of the human. Their repeated encounters had led him to form some kind of respect for them. After solving a more complicated version of the blue-X puzzle, for instance, he reacted with great pride and enthusiasm.

"INCREDIBLE! YOU SOLVED THE PUZZLE! AND YOU DIDN'T EVEN NEED MY HELP… YOU MUST REALLY ENJOY THESE LIKE I DO!"

They conceded that he did have a point; Frisk was gradually starting to like solving puzzles.

"I'M SURE YOU'LL LOVE THE NEXT ONE THEN! IT MIGHT EVEN BE TOO EASY FOR YOU!"

He didn't run ahead this time, but rather stayed side-by-side with them. The two passed Sans on the way (Frisk hadn't yet given up wondering how he was able to just appear and disappear when nobody was looking), and he tagged along.

"by the way… what's your name, kid?"

"Oh yeah, I never told you that. I'm Frisk."

"WELL THEN, COME RIGHT THIS WAY, FRISK-HUMAN. WOWIE, I CAN'T WAIT TO SHOW YOU WHAT ELSE WE HAVE!"

And so they proceeded toward the next puzzle with the skeletons, feeling a strange comfort with them. The two seemed nice enough, anyway. Still… Papyrus was continuing to boast about wanting to capture them so he could fulfill his mission. It seemed to be immensely important to him.

What would they do when the time came to settle the conflict for real?


	16. Chapter 15: The Final Stretch

Chapter 15: The Final Stretch

 **Author's Note: Yay, longer chapter! By the way, it could just be me, but the date problem seems to still be affecting this story. Specifically, whenever I update this, FanFiction shows the day of updating to be a few days earlier and doesn't show this story when it should. So to find it on the Undertale fanfic list, you'd have to check a few pages prior, I think... basically, if you're interested in keeping up with this adaptation, the easiest way to make sure that the date glitch isn't a problem would be to follow it. That would be great! Now, kind readers, I won't take up any more time with this. Enjoy!  
**

Frisk was willing to patiently wait for the skeletons to position themselves on the other side of the next puzzle. It was some kind of electronic floor made of square tiles, each colored varying shades of gray.

"YOU'RE GONNA LOVE THIS ONE!" Papyrus exclaimed as he began using a control panel. The floor started humming in its startup process.

"IT WAS MADE BY THE GREAT DOCTOR ALPHYS!"

"Who's that?"

"eh, just a friend of ours."

"WAIT, YOU TWO KNOW EACH OTHER?"

"course we do, everyone knows me."

"INDEED… NOW, FRISK, I SHALL EXPLAIN THE PUZZLE TO YOU. WHEN I THROW THIS SWITCH, EACH TILE WILL BEGIN TO CHANGE COLOR! THE COLORS ALL MEAN DIFFERENT THINGS, SO LISTEN CLOSELY!"

Papyrus started rattling off a very long list of effects for each color, such as which ones could be stepped on and which ones couldn't, or which ones could only be stepped on under specific circumstances. As much as Frisk tried to keep track of what he was saying, it was simply too much to absorb.

"…AND YOU CAN FREELY WALK ON PINK TILES. WELL, DID YOU CATCH ALL OF THAT?"

"Um, do you think you could repeat-"

"GREAT! OH, ONE MORE THING: THIS PUZZLE IS RANDOMIZED! NOT EVEN I WILL KNOW THE SOLUTION! HERE GOES!"

With a wide grin, he pulled one last switch on the control panel. The tiles rapidly flashed a great number of colors at such a high frequency that it actually gave Frisk a headache to look at. After a few seconds of vibrant flashing, the puzzle stopped with a straight trail of pink tiles leading directly through it. Papyrus stumbled away, dizzy from watching the lights.

"…guess I solved the puzzle."

Frisk walked across without anything hindering them. Once they'd reached the other side, Sans chuckled.

"congrats, kiddo. y'know… that spaghetti from earlier wasn't too bad for paps. ever since he started taking cooking lessons, he's improved a lot. who knows, maybe by next year he'll make something edible."

"Heh, I hope so. Is there much left to go through out here?"

He scratched his head.

"well, there's one more guard posted between us and town. papyrus is probably setting up his last two puzzles too. see ya there, frisk,"

Once again, Sans walked in the opposite direction before they could say anything else.

"…"

The forest offered several more interesting sights on the way to Snowdin. Frisk encountered Lesser Dog for a second time, but the guard didn't notice them at all. He was far too busy trying to build a dog out of packed snow near his station, with little success. Not that he seemed to care about its failure; whenever the snowdog fell apart he would just try again in a different spot. Frisk smiled as they walked past; Lesser Dog's motivation to succeed apparently matched their own.

[SAVE FILE UPDATED]

They were beginning to get the hang of using their own "determination" on command. The only problem was that it took quite a bit of energy to accomplish. Nevertheless, they felt sure that having such an ability would benefit them in the future.

Frisk also passed by a pair of snowmen- well, "pair" was a very strong word for it. One of them was an expertly packed and molded replica of Papyrus that bore a striking resemblance to him, complete with an identical red cape draped over its shoulders. The other was a mushy lump of snow and mud with "sans." written on it in red marker. They couldn't refrain from giggling at the lazy craftsmanship.

Less amusing was the obstacle immediately following that. A third "X to O" puzzle stood in their way, built into a patch of very icy ground. Maneuvering onto each switch was much more difficult than it seemed to Frisk, and solving it took several attempts. By the time they succeeded they were thoroughly irritated and cold from the ice. A bridge extended once the final X had been converted, letting them through.

"What is this?"

They found themselves standing in a forest clearing where a very small doghouse was sitting alone in the middle of a group of puffy snow mounds. No dog was inside. As Frisk moved to follow the trail, they noticed a golden glint out of the corner of their eye. 30G was buried in one of the snow puffs for some reason. They pocketed it without question, knowing that every bit helped.

Suddenly, the head of a small white dog burst out of the snow puff blocking the trail. It happily barked at Frisk a few times before rising out of its hiding spot and revealing a massive suit of armor almost twice their size and looking like it weighed no less than a ton. Greater Dog (their soul had appeared, identifying this new enemy) wielded a large spear that it swung around haphazardly. Somehow, Frisk wondered if it was trying to play and just didn't know its own strength.

Regardless of that, they had to take evasive action as Greater Dog lunged toward them and belly-flopped the spot they'd just been at, its tongue panting in excitement. It stood up with its spearhead turning blue and stabbed at Frisk, who didn't move and as such took no damage from the strike. They were having trouble thinking of how to pacify Greater Dog, it was far too tall and heavily armored to pet it on the head, and even though its tail was low enough to the ground, it never showed its back to them. Frantically brainstorming, they got an idea and reached into their bag to pull out the stick. Frisk waved it around to get Greater Dog's attention, then tossed it off to the side somewhere and ran past the guard while it was too busy chasing its new toy.

"All right, that went well… now what?"

A long, wooden bridge stretched over a canyon before them. They could see Sans and Papyrus on the other side, and hesitantly began walking across. About halfway through, a shout made them stop.

"FRISK! THIS IS YOUR FINAL AND MOST PRECARIOUS CHALLENGE! BEHOLD, THE GAUNTLET OF DEADLY TERROR!"

The cliff face on which the two skeletons stood rumbled, several hatches in the rocky surface opening and revealing ropes tied to several weapons befitting of the trial's name. A cannon barrel poked out, spearheads looked ready to spring free, a spiked ball on a chain hung limply. Strangely enough, one rope in particular was tied around the waist of a small white dog that looked absolutely clueless as to what was happening

"WHEN I SAY THE WORD, ALL OF THESE TRAPS WILL ACTIVATE AND COME FLYING AT YOU, SWINGING UP AND DOWN! CANNONS WILL FIRE, BLADES WILL SLICE! YOUR CHANCES AT SUCCESS ARE MINIMAL, HUMAN!"

Frisk steeled themselves for the gauntlet to begin moving, and another Save Point was created. After coming this far already, they would not be stopped by Papyrus, captured even after solving every puzzle and getting past all the guards and- wait, why wasn't anything happening?

"well? what's the holdup?"

"H-HOLDUP? WHAT HOLDUP?! I'M ACTIVATING IT NOW!"

A few more uneventful seconds passed.

"that, uh, doesn't seem activated to me."

"WELL, YOU SEE… THIS CHALLENGE IS… IT'S TOO EASY TO DEFEAT THE HUMAN WITH! YES, THAT'S IT! I CAN'T USE THIS ONE, I AM A SKELETON WITH STANDARDS! MY PUZZLES ARE VERY FAIR, AFTER ALL, AND MY TRAPS ARE EXPERTLY COOKED. BUT THIS? IT'S TOO DIRECT, NO CLASS AT ALL! AWAY IT GOES."

At his command, the gauntlet folded back into the mountainside. For a second, Frisk thought the skeleton was heaving a relieved sigh.

"WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT?! THIS IS ANOTHER DECISIVE VICTORY FOR THE GREAT PAPYRUS! NYEH! HEH! HEH! HEH… HUMAN! I WILL BE WAITING FOR YOU PAST THE OUTSKIRTS OF SNOWDIN TOWN! THERE YOU SHALL SEE ONCE AND FOR ALL THAT I AM SUPERIOR!"

He hurried away, leaving his brother behind with Frisk.

"i don't know what he's planning on now… but if i were you, i'd make sure i understand how blue attacks work. good luck kid, i know you'll be okay."

"Sans, wait. Why are you helping me so much?"

The skeleton stared them in the eyes for a second. His expression showed a brief flicker of something serious, but they couldn't tell what it was.

"…no reason. just lending a hand to a pal. if you want i could try capturin' ya too."

"N-no, that's okay…"

"well there you go. nothin' else to it. take care, frisk."

The two parted ways again, with an only slightly less confused human finally entering Snowdin.


	17. Chapter 16: Snowdin Town

Chapter 16: Snowdin Town

After the seemingly endless trek through the forest, Frisk was more than relieved to see some civilization at last. The small village provided a welcoming change of scenery, highly resembling the setting of Christmas TV ads they'd seen back on the surface. Snow-covered wooden buildings lined the sides of the path, monsters bustled around in high spirits and warm clothes, there was even a tall pine tree growing in the town square, thoroughly decorated and with presents beneath it (Frisk doubted that they celebrated Christmas, though). While they were still cautious about potential attacks, nobody seemed to notice (or care) that a human was among them, so they went through unharmed.

One monster in particular, some kind of yellow lizard with a tail, somewhat overly large head, and red spikes growing down his spine stopped them with an eager look on his face.

"Hey hey hey, you're a kid too, aren'tcha? I can tell because you're also wearing a striped shirt."

Indeed, he wore a pale tan shirt with mustard-colored stripes running horizontally across it. The Monster Kid didn't stick around long after that, apparently he was too excited to go see "her" and ran off through the street, bidding them farewell.

"I really like it here…"

[SAVE FILE UPDATED]

Happily chewing on a piece of monster candy, Frisk decided to visit the local store and see what it had to offer. The shopkeeper, a very amiable rabbit-like monster, supplied them with two special homemade treats. One was a mint-flavored Bisicle that could be snapped into two Unisicles to be eaten separately, the other was a Cinnamon Bunny. Frisk was especially looking forward to trying the latter, so much so that they ate it right then and there, ordering another for the road. They also bought an orange "Manly Bandana" to wear and finally got rid of the bandage stuck to their face. Interestingly, their soul noted that its defense had increased thanks to the bandana's magical properties, which only further improved Frisk's mood. After doing business, they were feeling curious about the town.

"So, what can you do here?"

The shopkeeper had a smile on her face as she thought about it.

"Well, Grillby's is down the road. It's a popular place to hang out and eat, even the Royal Guard's canine unit is there pretty often. My sister runs the inn next door, if you're just passin' by. The library's also available, and if you want some entertainment you can watch those wacky skeletons do their thing."

Intrigued, Frisk pressed her for more information.

"There's two of 'em… brothers, if I'm not mistaken. None of the folks here know where they came from, they just showed up a few years ago and asserted themselves. I hear one's being personally trained for the Royal Guard by Captain Undyne… probably explains why he rushes around so much, he must always be doin' stuff for her."

"Undyne? What's she like?"

The shopkeeper seemed to have a wry grin.

"Fish lady, with this heavy suit of armor on. She don't show up here too often, but every now and then she'll come by to check on the canine unit. She's sorta like the mayor of this town, makin' sure everything's under control. If you ever see her, make sure you stay outta her way. Real scary type, she is. And that temper of hers is hard to beat."

Wondering if staying any longer than necessary was a good idea, Frisk thanked her for the talk and left. They proceeded straight through the town without stopping anywhere else. Aside from what the shopkeeper had mentioned, the only other notable building was a surprisingly large brown house with two stories, a wreath on the door, and a small shed beside it. A pair of mailboxes posted out front- one overflowing with unopened junk mail, the other empty and labeled "The Great Papyrus"- erased any doubts as to who lived here. The door was locked, and nobody seemed to be home.

Frisk looked ahead on the path. The town seemed to end there, meaning only one thing- their final confrontation with Papyrus was just up ahead. Preparing themselves for anything, they resolutely marched forward.

"I have to do this, I have to get home…"

An icy mist set in around them as they walked, and Frisk began to shiver for the first time since they arrived in the snowy environment. Had it always been this cold and they just never noticed? The mist certainly did no favors to visibility either, as they found themselves wandering almost blindly until a tall silhouette came into view. Thankfully, they could see a little better as it wasn't so windy now. Papyrus was looking down at them with a troubled expression.

"SO YOU CAME… FRISK, MAY I TALK TO YOU ABOUT SOME… COMPLEX FEELINGS?"

His voice matched the look on his face, no longer loud and confident but nervous and confused. It seemed like he was hesitating. They were hoping to avoid a fight, so they nodded.

"THANK YOU. THEY ARE FEELINGS LIKE… THE JOY OF FINDING ANOTHER PASTA LOVER. OR FINDING SOMEONE WHO IS FANTASTIC AT SOLVING PUZZLES. OR HOPING TO HAVE A COOL, SMART PERSON THINK YOU ARE COOL AND SMART AS WELL. THESE FEELINGS…"

"Yes?"

They couldn't believe their luck. Was he too conflicted to try and capture them? The journey would be so much easier now that-

"WHY, THEY MUST BE WHAT YOU ARE FEELING RIGHT NOW!"

Oh. Well, at least he didn't look sad any more. Hurray?

"I CAN HARDLY IMAGINE WHAT IT MUST BE LIKE TO FEEL THAT WAY. AFTER ALL, I AM VERY GREAT. I DON'T EVER WONDER WHAT IT'S LIKE TO HAVE LOTS OF FRIENDS."

"I'll bet…" Frisk muttered under their breath.

"I PITY YOU… LONELY HUMAN. WORRY NOT, FRISK! YOU SHALL BE LONELY NO LONGER! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL BE YOUR…"

All of a sudden, his voice trailed off. He was clearly stewing something over in his mind, which surfaced when his expression changed to one of steadfast resolve.

"NO… NO! THIS IS ALL WRONG! I CAN'T BE YOUR FRIEND! YOU ARE A HUMAN! I MUST CAPTURE YOU!"

Frisk felt the confidence they'd approached him with shriveling up as a fight seemed inevitable now.

"THEN, I CAN FULFILL MY LIFELONG DREAM!"

A row of narrow bones emerged from the ground to form a large rectangle around the two, effectively boxing them in with each other.

"POWERFUL! POPULAR! PRESTIGIOUS!"

Frisk's soul appeared before them as their foe raised a clenched fist.

"THAT'S PAPYRUS! THE NEWEST MEMBER… OF THE ROYAL GUARD!"


	18. Chapter 17: Bonetrousle

Chapter 17: Bonetrousle

 **Author's Note: Wow, this story's broken 1000 views! Thanks so much, I hope I'm doing well with it! Now, without further ado: the Papyrus fight!**

Papyrus dramatically pointed at Frisk, upon which magical bones were conjured in thin air to fly straight at them. They found themselves having to duck and weave between the rows of projectiles, and when one struck their soul they were less than pleased to see its HP drop to 15/20. The skeleton was surprisingly powerful, but he seemed to notice how much damage he'd done. His attacks moved more slowly, and Papyrus still looked like he was struggling with himself.

"WELL, AREN'T YOU GOING TO FIGHT BACK?"

"No, I'm not! I don't want to hurt you."

"HURT ME? PREPOSTEROUS! IT SEEMS YOU'LL HAVE TO WITNESS MY FULL POWER, HUMAN! BEHOLD, MY FABLED 'BLUE ATTACK!'"

Papyrus started to generate blue-tinted bones. Remembering Sans' advice, Frisk just stood perfectly still as they passed through their soul without dealing any damage. Ten bones later, they were facing the tall skeleton with a confused frown. Nothing had happened to them.

At least, they thought so until they noticed that their soul itself suddenly turned a dark blue in color and began hovering very low to the ground. A short line of bones popped out of the snow and sped toward Frisk, forcing them to jump to get the heart high enough to avoid the attack. It still moved with them like it did previously.

"YOU'RE BLUE NOW. THAT'S MY ATTACK. NYEH HEH HEH HEH HEH HEH HEH!"

Frisk had to reevaluate their strategy as Papyrus sent waves of bones flying across the ground. While they counted their lucky stars that the magic attacks they'd encountered so far seemed to have no effect on their body other than a slight tingling, their soul was much more susceptible to damage. Unlike the monsters from the Ruins and the Royal Guard, Papyrus seemed to realize that fact. He specifically targeted the blue heart with intricate combinations of white and blue bones, forcing the human to jump all over the arena. Still, they made no attempts to counter.

"YEAH, DON'T MAKE ME USE MY SPECIAL ATTACK! OOH, I CAN ALMOST TASTE MY FUTURE POPULARITY!"

His focus on the battle wavered as he began daydreaming about all the great things to come for him. Frisk was able to take more of a breather between each wave of bones, but kept their guard up for his apparently soon-to-come "special attack."

"I CAN SEE IT NOW! THE GREAT PAPYRUS: UNPARALELLED SPAGHETTORE AND CAPTAIN OF THE ROYAL GUARD! UNDYNE'S GOING TO BE SO PROUD OF ME! THE KING WILL TRIM A HEDGE IN THE SHAPE OF MY FACE! MY BROTHER WILL…"

Papyrus frowned in irritation.

"…NOT CHANGE VERY MUCH. BUT I'LL HAVE LOTS OF ADMIRERS!"

As he kept speaking, Frisk noticed that his attacks were slowing down even more. Dodging them was no problem, but now they were curious as to what was bothering him.

"BUT… H-HOW WILL I KNOW IF THEY SINCERELY LIKE ME? THEY'RE NOT LIKE YOU… SOMEONE LIKE YOU IS HARD TO COME BY. AND IF YOU'RE CAPTURED, I DON'T THINK THEY'LL LET YOU GO…"

Papyrus looked like he was trying to shake off his insecurity. His bones rattled fiercely as he stomped a foot.

"URGH, THAT DOESN'T MATTER! FRISK, PREPARE TO FACE MY SPECIAL ATTACK!"

He thrust his hands forward as if to summon it, but nothing happened. Scowling, he tried it a second time. And a third. And a fourth. Still nothing. Frisk and Papyrus were looking around the arena in confusion before their eyes settled on something moving within the mist.

It was a small, white-furred dog. Specifically, the same dog that had been part of the Gauntlet of Deadly Terror. Frisk didn't know how it had gotten there, but it had apparently made itself comfortable. Seeming totally oblivious to the battle happening before its eyes, the dog held a glowing bone in its mouth and was sitting down in the snow with a blank expression.

"WHAT THE HECK- HEY, YOU STUPID DOG! GIVE ME THAT BONE, IT'S MY SPECIAL ATTACK!"

The dog jumped onto its feet and ran away with the attack still in its mouth, wiggling between the bones caging in the combatants. Papyrus groaned loudly at the loss.

"WELL… I GUESS I'LL JUST USE A REALLY COOL NORMAL ATTACK. HERE IT COMES…"

Frisk was forced into action again as Papyrus released yet another wave of bones. It somewhat irritated them that their soul was still low to the ground, but at least they were getting the hang of dodging in that state. Jumping was even a bit fun for them. They couldn't resist cracking a smile as they weaved around a series of bones spelling out the words "cool dude."

Soon enough, Papyrus ceased the barrage, looking very tired. Frisk had taken some additional damage, but was in relatively good shape.

"WHEW… IT'S CLEAR… YOU CAN'T DEFEAT ME! YEAH, I CAN SEE YOU SHAKING IN YOUR BOOTS! THEREFORE, I ELECT TO GRANT YOU MERCY!"

"You… you do?"

The battle ended, and Frisk's soul disappeared. As if fate were taunting them, the mist in the air vanished as well. Of course now they could see clearly, when it wasn't as critical to their survival. Papyrus looked downcast.

"NYOO HOO HOO… I CAN'T EVEN STOP SOMEONE AS WEAK AS YOU. UNDYNE'S GOING TO BE DISAPPOINTED IN ME… NOW I'LL NEVER JOIN THE ROYAL GUARD. AND MY FRIEND QUANTITY WILL REMAIN STAGNANT!"

They felt a little bad for him. Truthfully, he seemed nice enough for their liking. Frisk weighed their options and decided that they could at least comfort him.

"Uh… hey, Papyrus! I'll be your friend if you want."

His expression brightened almost instantly. He stared down at Frisk with a widening smile.

"WOW… REALLY? YOU WILL? I CAN'T BELIEVE I HAVE A NEW FRIEND! WHO KNEW ALL IT TAKES IS TO GIVE SOMEONE AWFUL PUZZLES THEN FIGHT THEM?"

Considering what they'd already seen while underground, Frisk wasn't sure if that genuinely was how monsters made friends. By that point they wouldn't be very surprised.

"Heh, yeah. Don't worry, nothing will take the Great out of you."

Corny, but it seemed effective. A bright red blush appeared on Papyrus' face (even though he was a skeleton and therefore shouldn't have been able to do that, Frisk just accepted it as another mysterious working of "magic") and he became giddy.

"I… T-THANK YOU, HUMAN- NO, FRISK! I HEREBY GIVE YOU PERMISSION TO PASS THROUGH THIS AREA. AND I WILL ALSO GIVE YOU DIRECTIONS BACK TO THE SURFACE: CONTINUE ONWARD UNTIL YOU REACH THE END OF THE CAVERN. THEN, ONCE YOU GET TO THE CAPITAL, YOU CAN CROSS THE BARRIER."

"There's a barrier?"

"OF COURSE THERE IS, THAT'S WHY WE'RE TRAPPED DOWN HERE! ANYTHING CAN COME IN, BUT ONLY A PERSON WITH A POWERFUL SOUL- LIKE YOU- CAN EXIT THROUGH IT. THE KING WANTS TO CAPTURE A HUMAN FOR THAT REASON, SO MONSTERS CAN BE FREED THROUGH SOUL POWER!"

They didn't bother asking how that worked. Avoiding capture was more important to them anyway.

"OH, I ALMOST FORGOT TO TELL YOU: IN ORDER TO GET TO THE BARRIER, YOU WILL HAVE TO PASS THROUGH THE KING'S CASTLE. THE KING OF ALL MONSTERS… HE IS… WELL, HE'S A BIG FUZZY PUSHOVER! EVERYONE LOVES HIM. YOU CAN JUST ASK 'EXCUSE ME, MR. DREEMURR, CAN I GO HOME NOW?' AND HE'LL PROBABLY TAKE YOU TO IT!"

"Are you sure about that…?"

"OF COURSE I AM! YOU DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT HIM. THE ONLY PERSON WHO WANTS TO CAPTURE YOU IS…"

His face fell.

"UNDYNE… B-BUT SHE SAID SHE WON'T BE HERE FOR AT LEAST TWO DAYS, SO YOU'LL HAVE TIME TO SNEAK PAST HER!"

Frisk was willing to take his word for it (and if they got into serious trouble they could always restart from their Save Point and just run past Papyrus instead of battling him). They were feeling utterly exhausted from the journey through the forest, so taking some time to rest sounded ideal to them.

"I KNOW! IN THE MEANTIME, WHY DON'T WE HANG OUT FOR A LITTLE WHILE? IT'LL BE FUN, JUST ME AND MY NEW FRIEND!"

He had such a hopeful look in his eyes that Frisk didn't have the heart to deny him. Besides, they had gotten used to being around the skeletons. The truth was that they didn't have many friends back on the surface. Just a few other kids from their neighborhood who they barely saw anyway. Meeting the monsters and noticing that (for the most part) they were kind and welcoming was rather nice, and if someone as boastful but earnest as Papyrus wanted to be their friend then who were they to say no?


	19. Chapter 18: Competitive Friendship

Chapter 18: Competitive Friendship

 **Author's Note: In case you're wondering why some of these chapters have two spaces in between sentences while others have only one space (same thing with Papyrus' words), it's because I've already typed up a lot of the story on Microsoft Word, and I use two spaces between sentences. For some reason, the Doc Manager here can't seem to decide if "clear formatting" includes removing double spaces or not, and it's pretty inconsistent.**

"COME ON FRISK, THIS WAY. I'LL TAKE YOU TO A VERY SPECIAL PLACE, SOMEWHERE I SPEND A LOT OF TIME…"

The pair stopped in front of the tall building at the outskirts of Snowdin. Somehow, Frisk wasn't surprised.

"MY HOUSE! COME ON IN!"

Papyrus unlocked the door, holding it open for them. They gave him a grateful nod and walked in, only to immediately stop and look around upon taking a few steps inside.

"WELCOME TO SCENIC 'MY HOUSE.' ENJOY AND TAKE YOUR TIME!"

The skeletons' residence didn't have the same warm and cozy appeal as Toriel's home, but something about it was inviting nonetheless. Their floor was covered in a soft blue and purple-striped rug (very similar in color to Frisk's shirt) that looked devoid of stains or tears, and the walls were painted a dark maroon. There was a TV set- inwardly, Frisk wondered what monsters even watched- against one wall, facing an old looking green couch with significantly indented cushions. A large table was tucked in one corner of the living room, and a nightstand was in the other. The entrance to the kitchen was close by as well. There was also a staircase leading to the second floor. All in all, it seemed like a mostly normal house to Frisk… at least until they noticed a few strange features as they looked closer.

For starters, there seemed to be no bathroom in sight (understandable, given that for various reasons a skeleton would have little use for one), which made Frisk glad that they'd taken the time to use the public restroom at the store earlier. Sitting on the bigger table was a small rock covered in sprinkles; according to Papyrus it was Sans' pet that he always forgot to feed. A dirty sock was nestled in a corner beside the TV with a series of notes attached to it. Curious, Frisk read it silently.

"SANS, PLEASE PICK UP YOUR SOCK."

"ok."

"DON'T JUST PUT IT BACK DOWN! MOVE IT!"

"ok."

"YOU MOVED IT TWO INCHES! MOVE IT TO YOUR ROOM!"

"ok."

"AND DON'T BRING IT BACK!"

"ok."

"WHY IS IT STILL HERE?!"

"didn't you just say not to bring it back to my room?"

"FORGET IT."

That got a chuckle out of them. The last notable thing in their living room was a "joke book" sitting on the smaller table. Frisk opened the cover, expecting more of Sans' puns. Instead they were treated to a title reading "Quantum Physics." Inside that was another cover for a joke book, then another physics book, then another joke book. They decided to stop just as a loud crashing noise came from behind them.

"ARGH, CATCH THAT MEDDLING CANINE!"

The same dog from earlier ran out of the kitchen with yet another bone in its mouth and stared at Frisk, who tried to stand in its way. It just darted between their legs and out the door, leaving Papyrus fuming. All of a sudden, Sans was looking down at them from the floor above and playing "wah-wah-wahhhh" on a trombone he held. Just as quickly as he'd appeared he retreated into what Frisk assumed was his bedroom and locked the door behind him.

"SANS!" his brother shouted. "STOP PLAGUING MY LIFE WITH INCIDENTAL MUSIC!"

He groaned and pressed a gloved hand to his forehead.

"WELL… IF YOU'RE DONE LOOKING AROUND, I CAN SHOW YOU MY ROOM. SANS WON'T BE COMING OUT FOR A WHILE ANYWAY."

"Sure, let's go."

They ascended the stairs and approached the leftmost door. Frisk stared blankly at the messages posted on it.

"No girls allowed!"

"No boys allowed!"

"Papyrus allowed."

Upon entering, Frisk almost felt jealous of Papyrus. His carpet was the same as the one outside, but he also had a rectangular section rimmed with flames. Moreover, he was more than happy to describe everything they drew attention to.

He had his own computer that contained a wide array of programs including several games. Papyrus explained to them, "I'M QUITE POPULAR ON THE UNDERNET! SADLY, A MYSTERIOUS ANNOYANCE CONTINUALLY SENDS ME BAD PUNS IN A GOOFY FONT. HE'D BETTER HOPE I NEVER FIND OUT WHO HE IS!" In addition, he was the proud owner of a racecar-shaped bed (apparently he wished to one day drive in the surface world), a closet filled with neatly-arranged clothes, several action figures (obtained as gifts from a "chubby, smiling man" who often surprised people, named Santa), and a fully-stocked bookshelf featuring his favorite texts, including "Advanced Puzzle Construction for Critical Minds" and "Peek-a-Boo With Fluffy Bunny."

What Papyrus seemed especially fond of was a tattered black flag with a skull and crossbones symbol on it. According to him, Undyne had found it near her home and given it to him as a gift. Seeing as it was a human flag with a skull on it, Papyrus had deduced that humans clearly descended from skeletons. Frisk was too amused to correct him.

"SO… ARE YOU READY TO BEGIN HANGING OUT?"

"I thought we already were?"

"NO NO NO, I MEAN OFFICIALLY!"

"Uh… sure, I guess."

"NYEH HEH HEH, GREAT! WOWIE… I'VE NEVER ACTUALLY DONE THIS BEFORE… BUT WORRY NOT! YOU CAN'T SPELL 'PREPARED' WITHOUT SEVERAL LETTERS FROM MY NAME! LOOK, I SNAGGED A FRIENDSHIP GUIDE FROM THE LIBRARY EARLIER."

Indeed, he was holding what looked like a surprisingly thick book. Frisk wondered if monsters had some kind of long process to making friends to require such a hefty tome.

"LET'S SEE… 'ASK THE PERSON TO HANG OUT WITH YOU…' WELL, WE'VE DONE THAT ALREADY. NEXT! 'WEAR NICE CLOTHES TO SHOW YOU CARE!' FRISK, DO YOU HAVE NICE CLOTHING?"

They looked at themselves. Their blue and purple shirt and pants didn't quite match the orange bandana they wore.

"This is the nicest I have right now…"

"REALLY? WOWIE, I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU'D BE READY SO FAST! AND- WAIT A MINUTE, YOU WERE WEARING THAT OUTFIT EARLIER TOO! WHICH MEANS… YOU WANTED TO HANG OUT FROM THE START, RIGHT?"

"Heh… sure, I was…"

A blush covered his face.

"NOOOO! YOU'RE WAY BETTER AT THIS THAN I AM! WELL… WE'LL SEE ABOUT THAT! I'VE NEVER BEEN BESTED AT FRIENDSHIP, I CAN EASILY KEEP UP WITH YOU! FOR YOU SEE, I TOO CAN WEAR CLOTHING!"

For some reason, Frisk was finding this highly enjoyable. He clearly wouldn't hurt a fly, so they wondered how he'd been so strong earlier. Regardless, Papyrus was now rummaging through his closet and muttering to himself. After a minute or so he came back in an utterly ridiculous getup.

The human's attention didn't seem to be able to focus on one thing he was wearing. Shorts, a tank top, cleats, high socks, a baseball cap, and some kind of basketball shoulder pads all clashed tremendously with each other to produce a completely mismatched outfit. He stared Frisk down with a confident smirk.

"WELL? WHAT DO YOU THINK OF MY SECRET STYLE?"

"It looks… nice…?"

Papyrus dramatically gasped, clearly not prepared for a compliment on his clothing.

"SUCH SINCERETY… BUT! YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND THIS OUTFIT'S REAL POWER! CAN YOU FIGURE OUT WHAT ITS SECRET IS?"

Frisk carefully looked him over, trying to guess. They noticed that his hat was bulging slightly and pointed at it.

"Is something under there?"

He nodded and removed it to reveal a small present underneath. Papyrus held out the box for Frisk, who opened it. A tiny dish of spaghetti was inside with an equally small fork.

"IT'S A GIFT FOR YOU! BUT THIS IS NO PLAIN OL' PASTA! IT'S AN ARTISAN'S WORK, SILKEN AND CAREFULLY AGED IN A WOODEN CASK BY ME, MASTER CHEF PAPYRUS! WELL, FRISK, THE TIME HAS COME FOR THIS HANGOUT TO END! TASTE IT AND BE AMAZED!"

With how worked up he was getting, they were surprised that he hadn't just passed out. Nonetheless, they used the fork to take a small bite of it. The taste was indescribable but unquestionably disgusting; Sans had apparently been right in predicting that it would take another year for Papyrus to cook something edible. Their face reflexively scrunched up.

"SUCH A PASSIONATE EXPRESSION… YOU LIKE IT THAT MUCH?! THAT'S THE KINDEST THING… NOOOOOO! I'VE BEEN BESTED!"

He got control of himself and took a deep breath as Frisk choked down the spaghetti. Their stomach practically screamed in protest.

"HUMAN. IT'S CLEAR NOW: YOU'RE TOTALLY OBSESSED WITH ME. EVERYTHING YOU DO… EVERYTHING YOU SAY… IT'S ALL BEEN FOR MY SAKE."

"Yep, you know it… urgh…"

"WELL, WHILE I'M FLATTERED YOU FEEL THAT WAY… I THINK YOU'D BE BETTER OFF TRYING TO FIND MORE FRIENDS THAN JUST ME! YOU'LL BE MUCH HAPPIER THAT WAY. I BET YOU AND UNDYNE WOULD GET ALONG GREAT IF SHE WASN'T TRYING TO CAPTURE YOU!"

"I'll keep that in mind…"

"GREAT! I'M SURE I CAN CONVINCE HER TO LEAVE YOU ALONE. HEY, WHY NOT SLEEP ON OUR COUCH TONIGHT? YOU COULD USE SOMEWHERE TO STAY BEFORE CONTINUING."

Frisk thought about it. They were even more tired than they'd initially assumed, and the idea of sleeping anywhere sounded fantastic.

"I think I'll take you up on that offer."


	20. Chapter 19: Grillby's

Chapter 19: Grillby's

After a full night's sleep (at least Frisk assumed it was night, since there was no sun under Mount Ebott), they left the house to begin making their way toward the next area: a cave system full of flowing water known simply as Waterfall. Papyrus had given them his phone number and promised to offer advice whenever he could. Frisk's inventory was still in good shape, they had managed to create a Save Point before going to bed, and they weren't hungry at all (possibly due to Papyrus' spaghetti still being on their mind). Overall, they felt quite sure of themselves.

And yet… that dream they had…

Frisk didn't remember it well enough to recall specific details. It had to do with their father, and they recalled feeling highly uneasy, but beyond that there was nothing. All it really did was remind them of their mission: escape the underground, find the rumored red trees atop Ebott, and return with one of their branches. Still, something about the dream just wouldn't stop bugging them.

Writing that off as a problem to be solved "later," they left the skeletons' house. Sans was outside, walking in the opposite direction.

"heya, kid. wanna come to grillby's with me?"

According to Papyrus, his brother practically lived at that restaurant.

"Sorry, but it's all the way across town and I'm in a hurry… what are you doing here? Isn't your guard post out beyond the forest?"

"oh, i'm not working there today. i may not look it, but i'm also in charge of greeting people entering waterfall every other day."

The thought of Sans having to manage one occupation was hard to swallow; an additional one was completely insane. He noticed the bewildered look on Frisk's face.

"what, haven't ya seen a guy with two jobs before? fortunately, two jobs means twice as many legally-required breaks… so yeah, you wanna come?"

"Like I said, it would take too long to walk over there and back-"

"don't worry about it, i know a shortcut. follow me."

The next few minutes passed in something of a haze for Frisk. They distinctly remembered feeling a strange sense of nausea and weightlessness, but it was almost like they'd completely zoned out until they suddenly found themselves in front of Grillby's Diner on the other side of Snowdin. How they'd gotten there was an enigma, as the trip should have taken a lot longer than it did. They held the door open for their skeletal friend and walked in with him.

No matter how much hesitation they'd had before, Frisk couldn't deny that the wonderful smell of hamburgers and fries wafting throughout the room was intoxicating. Furthermore, Grillby's had a very familiar atmosphere, reminding them of the restaurants they would occasionally get to eat at back on the surface. Booths lined the walls and tables were arranged in the middle of the room with just enough space for patrons to move back and forth. The dogs from the Royal Guard were there, engaged in some kind of card game that Frisk didn't recognize. Other monsters lounged around in the booths or at the bar at the opposite end of the diner.

"hey, everyone" Sans said calmly. The entire room was filled with replies; he was definitely a regular here if they all knew him that well.

"Weren't you just here for breakfast a few minutes ago?" one duck-like monster asked him with a chuckle.

"nah, i haven't had breakfast in at least half an hour. you must be thinking of brunch."

The diner replied with raucous laughter. Once it had died down, Sans gestured to a seat at the bar. Frisk sat down and flinched at the sound of another whoopee cushion.

"whoops, watch where you sit down. sometimes weirdos like to mess with the chairs. heh heh… anyway, let's order. whaddya want?"

"A burger sounds great…" they admitted as their stomach growled.

"hey, that sounds pretty good. grillby, we'll have a double order of 'burg."

The bartender- apparently Grillby himself- was a giant human-shaped cloud of fire about six feet tall. He wore a simple suit and glasses (Frisk decided not to question how any of that was possible for a man made of fire). Listening to Sans' order, he nodded and left to prepare the food.

"so, what do you think of my brother? cool, ain't he?"

"Haha, he is."

"of course he is, you'd be cool too if _you_ wore a battle body every day. at least he washes it… and by that I mean he wears it in the shower."

Frisk was about to ask where they even showered since their house didn't have a bathroom, but Grillby returned with their burgers before they got the chance.

"here comes the grub! want some ketchup?"

"No thanks, I'm okay."

"well, more for me then."

Sans proceeded to drink an entire bottle of ketchup in about seven gulps. The red substance disappeared somewhere into his torso, possibly absorbed by magic.

"cool or not, you gotta agree papyrus tries real hard. like how he's training to be part of the royal guard. one day, he even went to the house of the captain and begged her to let him join. it was the middle of the night, so she shut the door in his face, but that didn't stop him. the next day he was still waiting there. impressed with his motivation, the captain decided to start giving him warrior training. it's… a work in progress. oh yeah, i wanted to ask you something…"

As Frisk chewed on the burger, they noticed a change in Sans' voice out of nowhere. It was lower-pitched and almost tense.

"…do you know anything about talking flowers?"

Their heart felt like it had suddenly turned to ice. Flowey was nowhere near out of their mind quite yet, and to hear Sans mention him was unsettling to the extreme.

"Uh… what… what kind of talking flowers?"

For a second it looked as if Sans had noticed the brief shock on Frisk's face, but he didn't call attention to it if he had.

"blue ones, called echo flowers. they're all over the marshes in waterfall. say somethin' to them and they'll say it again, over and over…"

"Why do you ask?"

"well, papyrus told me something interesting the other day. sometimes, when nobody else is around… a flower appears and whispers things to him."

Frisk suddenly had a serious compulsion to blurt out everything they had experienced at the hands of a flower, but for some reason their tongue refused to cooperate, so they could only listen in uncomfortable silence.

"flattery… advice… encouragement… predictions. weird, huh? someone must be using an echo flower to play a trick on him. keep an eye out, okay?"

"You got it," they managed to croak out in a low voice. Nothing else was apparently possible for them to say.

"thanks."

Sans got up after finishing his burger.

"can't believe i got outta work for that long… i should get back now. oh yeah, i'm flat broke. can ya foot the bill? it's just 10000G."

"W-what?!"

"i'm kidding… grillby, put it on my tab."

With that, he walked out of the diner. Frisk wrapped up the rest of their burger and stowed it in their bag for later, feeling extremely unsettled. They couldn't shake the horrible feeling that things would only get much, _much_ more difficult from then on.

As they would soon begin to learn, they were entirely correct.

 **End of Part Two**

 **Author's Note: Okay, that's all for Snowdin! Hope you're enjoying it so far, dear readers. In a few days I'll start posting the chapters for Waterfall (I hope the date doesn't screw up on this update -_-)**


	21. Chapter 20: Undyne

**PART THREE: AQUATIC PURSUIT**

 **Author's Note: And so we return to Frisk's adventure! Chapter updates are probably gonna slow down a bit from here on, but I promise you won't be waiting too long between each!**

Chapter 20: Undyne

As Frisk walked past the area where they'd fought Papyrus, they noticed the snow becoming thinner. "Waterfall," as the skeletons told them it was called, had less of a magic-controlled atmosphere to it. Taking in the surroundings, Frisk could tell that right away.

Rocky surfaces and soft dirt replaced the even snow they'd gotten used to, and the terrain felt a bit more like the Ruins now. While the air wasn't as stuffy as the catacombs, it lacked the tranquility and comfort of Snowdin- specifically, it was _frigid_. Possibly due to the aforementioned lack of magic, Waterfall had a much lower temperature than the preceding area, not helped by the fact that it was quite misty. Within minutes of entering, they felt like they'd just plunged into icy water, and they sincerely hoped that the entire area wasn't like this.

Sans was at a wooden sentry desk by the entrance to the next series of caves, reading out of a book. He gave Frisk a short wave but didn't pay them any mind other than that. Truly dedicated to "greeting" visitors. A blue flower- likely an echo flower, based on his description before- softly repeated the faint sound of flowing water. All was quiet save for the yellow lizardlike Monster Kid they'd encountered back in town, who quickly approached them with an excited grin.

"Yo! You're gonna see Undyne too? She's so cool, right?! I wanna be just like her when I grow up! Come on, or you'll miss her!"

He didn't seem to realize that Frisk was a human, which they decided was for the best. Monster Kid ran off through the cave, his short legs moving surprisingly quickly.

The phone rang, causing Frisk to jump. Half-expecting it to be Toriel, they answered within seconds.

"Hello-"

"HUMAN! GREETINGS, THIS IS THE GREAT PAPYRUS! I WAS WONDERING WHERE YOU WENT! SANS TOLD ME YOU VISITED GRILLBY'S WITH HIM AND THEN YOU DIDN'T COME BACK!"

"Oh, hi there… sorry for leaving, but I should move on before Undyne gets to Snowdin. I'm entering- wait a second, how did you get this number?"

"IT'S QUITE SIMPLE! I JUST DIALED EVERY NUMBER SEQUENTIALLY UNTIL I GOT YOURS! NYEH HEH HEH HEH! AND NOW THAT WE KNOW EACH OTHER'S NUMBERS, I'LL DO MY BEST TO HELP YOU THROUGH THE CAVERNS!"

That was at least a little comforting. Having someone who lived in the underground as their guide would make things much easier, and unlike Toriel he wasn't going to constantly fret over them (they hoped, at least).

"Sounds great! As I was saying, I'm entering Waterfall now."

"OH, FANTASTIC! I ADMIT I DON'T EXPLORE THAT AREA VERY OFTEN, BUT WE CAN FIGURE OUT ANYTHING TOGETHER! LET ME KNOW IF YOU FIND ANY PUZZLES!"

"I'll try to remember. Who sets them up here, if it isn't you and Sans?"

"HM… DEFINITELY NOT UNDYNE, SHE'S TERRIBLE AT PUZZLE-MAKING. I THINK LOCAL MONSTERS DO IT JUST FOR FUN. IMAGINE THAT! WHAT'S THE POINT OF A PUZZLE IF YOU'RE NOT USING IT TO CATCH A HUMAN?"

"Uh-"

"OOPS, I MUST ATTEND TO SOMETHING. I'LL BE RIGHT BACK. SANS, TRY NOT TO BREAK ANYTHING WHILE I'M GONE."

From the other end of the call, Frisk heard a nonchalant "okay." They whirled around to face the station he was just at, only to find an empty seat with no sign of the skeleton anywhere. Papyrus hung up, and they were left alone with their confusion and the sound of rushing water.

"On we go…"

They soon found the source of the noise- it was, as the name of the location indicated, a waterfall. Cascading down the surface of a steep cliff and flowing under a wooden bridge, the icy torrents looked uninviting to swim in. To their right was a seemingly bottomless drop.

"Wonder if there's another monster kingdom at the bottom. Hahaha…"

Frisk noticed a path leading behind the waterfall. As cold as it looked, the bridge was a little too narrow for their liking, so they decided to try going that way. A wooden box exactly like the one in Snowdin forest sat before them, with another sign beside it. They opened it and found that, sure enough, the items they'd stored away were brought to them. Frisk took the time to rearrange their bag. Now their inventory contained a Bisicle and a Cinnamon Bunny from Snowdin, the cell phone, the last piece of Monster Candy (which they decided to just eat right then and there), the leftover burger from Grillby's, and the Manly Bandana (still being worn on their head). The slice of Toriel's pie was stored away with the spider donut.

"…what's this?"

Sitting near the box was a tattered pink tutu. They weren't sure how it had gotten there or who it belonged to, but something about seeing a human object (unless monsters also had them, which didn't seem likely) reminded them of the surface and how much they wanted to return there. Home was less and less far away by the minute.

Their soul suddenly appeared to identify the tutu as armor that would greatly increase their defense. How, Frisk didn't know, but the soul hadn't steered them wrong in item management yet. They put it around their waist, inwardly feeling a little ridiculous with the bandana, glove, and tutu all visually clashing. At least their soul was more magically defended, though.

They moved past the waterfall and found a branching path. One way led up a slope, the other down. Papyrus didn't answer the phone when they called for guidance, so they decided to check the lower route by themselves. Frisk had to walk through a patch of very tall grass which rustled a bit too much for their liking; excess noise would be detrimental to the whole "staying hidden" agenda.

And yet, they suddenly found themselves feeling extremely glad they'd taken the bottom path. Standing on the ledge mere yards above them was an imposing figure entirely clad in metal armor with jagged, painful-looking edges. A long red tuft of some kind, possibly decorative cloth, extended from the back of the figure's helmet, which had a single eye hole on the right side and a mouth grate that resembled a pair of jaws. They couldn't get a very clear view of the armored thing without making too much noise, so they were stuck in an uncomfortable crouch. It didn't seem to notice Frisk hiding in the grass, as its head was bowed. Still, they remained perfectly motionless.

Approaching footsteps got the attention of both the human and the armored figure. Papyrus wandered onto the ledge above and looked at the silent watcher with a nervous smile.

"H… HI, UNDYNE! GREAT TO SEE YOU AGAIN. I'M HERE WITH MY REPORT…"

"Regarding that human you called me about the other day?" Undyne answered. Her voice rang ominously within her metal helmet and sounded like a very quiet growl.

"Y-YES, THAT…"

"Have you fought them yet?"

The skeleton put on an even wider smile and folded his arms in an attempt to look proud.

"OF COURSE I DID! I FOUGHT VALIANTLY! NO HUMAN IS A MATCH FOR THE G - GREAT PAPYRUS!"

 _"Then why don't you have their soul with you?"_

"AH- YOU SEE… I DID NOT CAPTURE THEM. I TRIED VERY HARD, UNDYNE, BUT… I FAILED."

"Hmph. I should've guessed. Very well, I'll have to take them myself."

Papyrus looked like he was starting to panic. Frisk wanted to slip away while Undyne was distracted, but was too afraid that she'd hear them moving in the grass.

"BUT YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND! YOU DON'T HAVE TO DESTROY THEM, FRISK IS REALLY NICE-"

"'Frisk,' you say? I've heard enough, I'm going to find them. If you want to make up for your failure then you'll assist me."

"I… I UNDERSTAND… I'LL HELP YOU HOWEVER I CAN."

He ran back the way he came in, looking rather shaken. Undyne didn't move from where she stood. Seeing as they had no other option (and waiting there wasn't a prime idea for them), Frisk began to creep through the tall grass. Just as they were approaching the end of it, a careless stumble caused the shrubbery to rustle. Immediately, the Royal Guard above them turned her head in their direction. She took a thundering step forward, making a stomping noise that loudly reverberated through the air and caused Frisk's breath to catch in their throat.

Undyne held out a hand, whereupon bright blue light appeared and took the shape of a spear which she held tightly as she slowly cast her gaze around the area. After a few seconds, she seemed unable to find anything and the spear vanished. Undyne turned on her heels and marched away, with a terrified Frisk in her wake. Once they decided that it was safe to keep moving, they finally exited the tall grass and breathed a sigh of relief.

More rustling came from where they'd just been hiding. Monster Kid ran out behind Frisk (who wondered how they hadn't noticed him there) and bounced happily.

"Yo… did you see how she was staring right at you…? That was… AWESOME! I'm so jealous, what'd ya do to get her attention like that? C'mon, let's go watch her beat up some bad guys!"

He ran off further down the path just as fast as he'd appeared, stumbling and falling onto his face at one point but not seeming hurt in the slightest. Frisk had an enormous sense of dread, but felt their soul pulse with determination to escape. Their "save point" was updated at that spot.


	22. Chapter 21: History, Part 1

Chapter 21: History, Part 1

They trailed after Monster Kid, keeping a close eye on everything around them. Undyne was on the prowl, and with Papyrus apparently helping her, things were going to be difficult to say the least. Thankfully, the first puzzle Frisk came across wasn't hard at all; they just had to arrange four large seeds in the water to form a bridge across river banks. No issues there.

Waterfall (or, they hoped, the part of it they were currently in) had a very eerie feel to it, and not just because the Royal Guard's captain was actively hunting them while they were in unfamiliar territory. It was cold and damp, there were no buildings or even sentry posts in sight, and the darkness there was greater than anything Frisk had seen in the Ruins or Snowdin. At some points- but not enough points for their liking- glowing algae in the water would provide a decent glow to the area, the lone human's only source of companionship.

That is, until the phone suddenly rang and displayed Papyrus' number. After a slight hesitation over whether he could be trusted, Frisk answered (admittedly a bit glad to have him to talk to).

"HUMAN! I HAVE A QUESTION FOR YOU. WHAT ARE YOU WEARING RIGHT NOW? I'M ASKING FOR A FRIEND WHO THINKS SHE SAW YOU WEARING A BANDANA."

"Is that all she thinks she saw?"

"YES. SO, ARE YOU WEARING ONE?"

They immediately tore off the Manly Bandana and stuffed it into their bag.

"Of course I am. I haven't seen this friend of yours."

"AH, OKAY! THANK YOU VERY MUCH. YOU'RE MY FRIEND TOO, SO I'LL TRUST YOUR WORD 100-PERCENT. MAYBE YOU'LL GET TO MEET EACH OTHER LATER! HAVE A NICE DAY!"

He hung up immediately afterward. Frisk doubted that such a simple matter as clothing would improve their chances of going undetected, so they hurried along. The only monster to get in their way was named Aaron. He was a muscular half seahorse, half literal horse that engaged them in a flexing competition which, surprisingly, he considered Frisk to have won. They were rewarded with even more coins. Somehow, their soul had also become red once again after battling Papyrus and was floating in its original position.

Frisk soon came to a room filled with echo flowers that seemed to be shouting at each other. In actuality, they were endlessly repeating things spoken to them in regards to the numerous sparkling stones embedded in the cave's ceiling. They listened carefully to what was being said.

"…I want to see the surface…"

"…wish my family would visit sometime."

"When will we be free?"

"Come on, guys! Thousands of people wishing together can't be wrong! We'll get out someday, the king will find a way!"

"I wish my sister and I could get to see the _real_ stars."

A strange weight settled on their chest when they noticed a telescope in the corner of the room, seemingly for looking up at the stones as if they were a night sky. It was obvious what that weight was- sympathy. Frisk felt awful for the monsters being forced to live underground. From what they'd seen they were mostly kind, and truthfully would have seemed like nice friends and neighbors back at the surface world. Quirky, sure, and sometimes difficult to understand, but definitely not evil.

Continuing out of that sanctuary for wishes to phony stars, Frisk tried their best to stay focused. There was nothing they could do for the monsters anyway, not while they had to avoid being captured. Best to just pretend none of this had ever happened once they found a way out.

At least, that _seemed_ like a good idea until they entered the next chamber. It was a pier of some kind, made of wooden planks and poles to keep it above the freezing cold water. Various inscriptions on the cavern walls told a story of betrayal and fear: the Monster-Human War. As much as they wanted to ignore it and keep going, Frisk couldn't stop themselves from reading.

"Many people wonder why the humans attacked us. They seemed to have nothing to fear; it would take the combined soul energy of nearly every monster to equal the raw strength of a single human soul. But… they have a weakness: ironically, it is their own power. The strength of their souls allows them to persist outside of their body, even if the body itself perishes they will remain intact as long as they are not too heavily damaged."

 _"That explains why I can see my soul in a fight, but monsters can't…"_ they thought. _"Why would humans care about that though?"_ Soon enough, they got their answer.

"If a monster were to defeat a human in battle, they could take the remaining soul. A monster with a human soul is a terrifying creature, capable of unleashing unfathomable power!"

Right beside the text was a drawing of some kind of being with devilish horns and piercing eyes. Inscribed stick figures seemed to flee before it and the massive flames bursting from its hands. The picture made Frisk feel quite uneasy, and all the more focused on keeping their soul right where it was.

The pier ended to their right, and they took a small raft tied to it to the bridge across the water. As there was little flowing water in that area, things were very quiet. Frisk wasn't sure if they preferred that or not as they walked along the bridge. The silent wish for some noise to fill the empty space was answered to the extreme when a blue spear made of light flashed into view and embedded itself in the ground mere inches in front of them. They jumped back in surprise and looked for the source, then felt their heart sink. Undyne was standing on a river bank very close to the bridge, summoning more magical spears and hurling them at Frisk with incredible speed.

"Found you, human scum."

They twisted and weaved around the flying projectiles in a panic, not letting their soul- which had taken the opportunity to appear in front of them even though they had no way of defending themselves- come to harm. Taking off sprinting down the bridge, they could hear Undyne's loud clanging footsteps behind them. Fortunately, her attacks were accompanied by a dull humming as they were thrown, so Frisk could hear them before they got too close. Unfortunately, there were so many of them that it hardly mattered. Three spears managed to strike the soul directly, causing immense pain and dropping its HP to 8/20 (despite their color, they didn't seem to operate in the same way as the other blue attacks). A crashing sound indicated that she'd jumped onto the bridge with Frisk and was giving chase.

 _"Need to hide, need to hide, need to hide… there!"_

Frisk had spotted another large patch of tall grass where the bridge met with another marshy section. They were much shorter than Undyne and could hopefully lose her in there. She seemed to realize the same thing, throwing her spears with even greater ferocity to stop them. Luckily, they made it to the grass and crouched down once they'd reached the center. Their pursuer didn't give up, though, and was slowly walking toward that very spot. Frisk held their breath as Undyne looked around, apparently unable to see through the thick shrubbery. Frustrated, she flung one hand out no less than two feet to their left and grabbed something. They heard a stifled gasp and soft giggling for a second before Undyne grunted in disinterest, abruptly walked back toward the bridge. Once the sound of her footsteps was gone, Frisk kept moving through the grass until they reached a clear path at the end. Monster Kid, once again, was right behind them, which explained who had been giggling.

"Oh man, did you see that?! Undyne just picked me up and looked at me! I'm never washing my face again, yo!"

They fought the urge to wince at the sight of a reddish bruise on his cheek from where she'd grabbed him, sharply contrasting with his yellow self. Monster Kid barely seemed to notice it, though, and smiled as usual.

"Man, are you unlucky! If you'd been just a _little_ bit closer you'd have gotten her attention! Well, don't worry, I'm sure we'll find her again! C'mon, this way!"

Going where Undyne would show up was the exact opposite of what Frisk wanted to do, but there didn't seem to be any other way forward. Sighing, they trudged along after their new reptilian guide.


	23. Chapter 22: The Dreams of Monsters

Chapter 22: The Dreams of Monsters

Surprisingly, or perhaps not surprisingly at this point, Sans made another appearance in the next corridor. He was standing beside a telescope like the one they'd seen earlier and beckoned for them to come closer.

"nice tutu, kid. wanna take a look through here? i've been thinking of getting into the telescope business, y'know. normally i'd charge 50000G to use this premium telescope, but since i know ya it's free."

Frisk peeked into the appropriate spot and was met with nothing but a view of the dark cavern wall. They pulled their face away after a few seconds, staring at Sans with a frown. He just winked.

"what's the matter? not happy with it? don't worry, i'll give ya a full refund."

"Thanks a lot…"

As they turned to continue walking, he snickered.

"i think you've got something on your face."

Frisk immediately rubbed at the eye they'd just looked through the telescope with and saw a pink smear on their hand. He'd covered the viewfinder's edges with ink so a ring had formed around their eye. Admittedly, they wanted to be good-natured about the prank and compliment him for it, but once again he had vanished when they weren't looking.

"How does he keep doing that?"

The phone rang again, displaying Papyrus' number. Frisk answered in the hopes that they'd coax him into giving advice on steering clear of Undyne.

"GREETINGS, FRISK HUMAN! HOW ARE YOU?"

"Just fine," they lied. Their soul was still at 8/20 HP and they needed to eat something soon to heal it.

"OH, THAT'S GOOD. REMEMBER WHEN I ASKED YOU ABOUT CLOTHES? FOR A FRIEND?"

"Yeah, I remember. I also met her a few minutes ago!"

"REALLY? WHAT DID YOU THINK-"

"She threw spears at me. I'm lucky I got out alive."

There was a brief moment of tense silence before Papyrus continued.

"THAT CAN'T BE RIGHT… YOU TOLD ME YOU WERE WEARING A BANDANA, SO I DECIDED TO MISLEAD HER. I TOLD UNDYNE THAT YOU HAD SOMETHING DIFFERENT ON, LIKE A TUTU! I KNOW YOU WOULDN'T BE CAUGHT DEAD WEARING ONE OF THOSE."

Frisk resisted the urge to slap their own forehead. They'd already felt dumb wearing that pink thing around while hiding, and now Papyrus was unknowingly making fun of their fashion sense. Seeing no reason to continue trying to disguise themselves, they put the Manly Bandana on again for additional defense.

"REGARDLESS… HER OPINION OF YOU IS VERY… MURDERY."

"I can tell."

"SHE'S NOT BAD, THOUGH! ONCE YOU GET TO KNOW HER SHE'S VERY NICE! WE'RE GREAT PALS, SHE AND I. IT PAINED ME TO LIE TO HER LIKE THAT. WOWIE, THIS IS HARD… I JUST WANT TO BE EVERYONE'S FRIEND!"

He sounded a little upset, so Frisk decided to try and get his mind off it.

"Did you know that Sans was just out here with a telescope? I didn't know he had one."

"OF COURSE HE DOES! HE LOVES OUTER SPACEY SCI-FI STUFF."

"He also apparently has two jobs."

"INCREDIBLE, ISN'T IT? HE CAN SLACK OFF TWICE AS MUCH NOW. DID HE NOT TELL YOU ABOUT EITHER OF THESE THINGS?"

"No, he didn't."

"THAT'S OKAY. SANS NEVER TELLS ANYONE ANYTHING. I HAVE TO GO FOR A LITTLE WHILE, TAKE CARE!"

Hanging up, Frisk reached into their bag and pulled out the Bisicle from Snowdin. They snapped it in half and began eating one Unisicle, watching their HP climb to 19/20. That seemed fine for the time being.

They arrived at a trail through the Waterfall marshes with more echo flowers growing everywhere. A passing conversation could be heard reverberating from them, between two female voices talking about their heartfelt wish to make it back to the surface world. An almost mournful longing was clear in both of them, and if they'd been around Frisk might have considered hugging them for some reason. Still, they told themselves that there wasn't anything they could do.

They almost tripped over a pair of discarded ballet shoes on the floor. Their soul notified them that, like the glove, these shoes were effective weapons. Frisk sighed and took off their own footwear, stowing them away in the bag. Sliding into the decently-fitting ballet shoes, they felt thoroughly absurd with a bandana, glove, tutu, and now these all being worn at once. In fact, if not for a sinking feeling that they'd have to fight their way past Undyne at some point, they would have completely discarded most of the items.

The equipment proved useful, though, as monsters began attacking Frisk along the way. Moldbygg (which they guessed to be much larger, tower-shaped relatives of the Moldsmal in the Ruins) grew hostile whenever they got too close and didn't back down until their "privacy" had been restored. Woshua (some kind of turtle-like monster with a tiny bathtub for a shell that had a duckling sitting in it) spat a foamy substance that smelled like soap at Frisk. They didn't let their soul get harmed, but allowed Woshua to clean other parts of their body, which seemed to please the monster. Throughout the two encounters, their new armor kept them relatively safe from harm, so they decided not to complain about how garish the display looked.

Only two monsters didn't attack. One was a large, whiteish octopus that rambled about how excited it was to have a visitor. It told Frisk all about how it wanted to travel to the surface and live in the ocean, since apparently the water in the lake where it lived was slowly draining. The octopus looked heartbroken when they had to leave, and they felt a little bad for it. The other was a fish named Shyren which, while _technically_ fighting Frisk, merely sat in a corner and nervously hummed. They followed along with it for a minute or so until the two had a decent tune going. Satisfied that Shyren looked more confident in her singing ability, the human marched onward, wondering how far ahead of them Monster Kid had gotten.


	24. Chapter 23: History, Part 2

Chapter 23: History, Part 2

Frisk came across more writing on the cave walls, continuing the story they'd seen before.

"Our ability to absorb human souls is what they feared. It has no counter, as a human cannot absorb a monster soul. When monsters die, their souls turn to ash immediately along with their bodies. An incredible power would be needed to rip the soul from a living monster. However, the difference in strength is staggering; it would take the combined force of nearly every monster soul to equal just one human's potential."

That didn't seem right to them. When they killed Toriel that first time (as much as they hated thinking about it), her soul had remained there for a few seconds. Frisk got a likely answer to the conundrum soon enough, however.

"There is but one exception. A particular species of monster, known as a Boss Monster, has a soul strong enough to persist after death for a few moments. Theoretically, a human could absorb this soul, but now that we are forever trapped here this shall not ever happen."

So she was a "Boss Monster," then. They didn't know what the difference was aside from what the writing told them, but it hardly mattered anyway. Toriel had stayed behind, and Frisk just hoped that she'd be safe if any other humans were to make their way into the Ruins.

The path through Waterfall led to a bucket with several umbrellas neatly placed inside it. Nobody was around, so they took one out gratefully; the constant dripping water was beginning to get on their nerves. Monster Kid was nearby too, hiding in a small crevice in the cavern wall. Due to his lack of arms he couldn't keep himself dry very well.

"Yo, you got an umbrella? Awesome, mind if I share?"

"Sure, come on in."

He stood side-by-side with Frisk under it as they walked. The two children were roughly the same height, making it a fairly simple task of holding the umbrella above them. Monster Kid spoke highly of Undyne the whole way.

"I'm telling you, she never loses when she beats up bad guys! If I were a human I'd wet the bed every night knowing she would beat me up, yo!"

"Haha, I bet she would!" They played along calmly. No reason to let him know the truth, otherwise he might run off to find Undyne, and another encounter with her wasn't something Frisk was looking forward to.

"Yeah… hey, were you there when we had that project in school where we had to take care of a flower? The King- oops, I mean Mr. Dreemurr, since he wanted us to call him that- donated his own flowers for us!"

"I remember doing that. It wasn't too hard."

"Well, I guess people with arms had an easier time," Monster Kid said wistfully. "Did you see when he came to the school and talked about responsibility and stuff? That was pretty cool, I guess. It's not every day that we get to see him."

"I must've been sick that day…"

"You didn't miss much. But imagine how great it'd be if Undyne came to school! She could beat up ALL the teachers!"

Frisk smiled, knowing exactly how he felt. Sometimes they liked to daydream about bad things happening to their own particularly unfair teachers back on the surface. Deep down, they probably wouldn't ACTUALLY wish harm on them, but it was fun to think about every once in a while. The two shared a laugh over the idea.

"Nah, she's too cool to hurt innocent people," Monster Kid finished, though his grin hadn't faded.

Their attention was caught by the most interesting sight Frisk had witnessed throughout their entire underground adventure. They'd entered an extremely large cave that seemed to stretch for miles in either direction, full of water around the path they were on. Thousands of sparkling stones filled the cavern, almost illuminating it fully. It was quite an impressive spectacle, but not nearly as captivating as the large building off in the distance. It was too far to make out clear details, but Frisk could see giant towers with smooth-looking coned tops, various large windows, and an overall elegant look. Monster Kid didn't seem to know what exactly it was, so the human called Papyrus to ask. He hadn't returned yet, so Sans answered instead, explaining that it was "the king's castle" before hanging up without saying much else.

"That's my destination… that's where I can find a way out."

Frisk and Monster Kid entered a different cavern where the umbrella wasn't necessary due to there being less water drops from the ceiling (refreshingly, it was also less cold), and the former put it away in a different bucket. They faced a ledge much too steep for either of them to climb.

"Yo… let me help you get up there."

Monster Kid walked up to the ledge and leaned forward a bit, presenting his back to the human.

"I'll find a different way around, you go on ahead."

Frisk felt somewhat touched by the offer. They wished they could have gotten up and pulled him with them, but he had no arms to grab onto.

"…okay."

They gently stood on his back and climbed onto the ledge, staring down at him.

"Thanks a lot, um… I dunno your name."

"Oh yeah, we never really got to that part. My name's Kid. Yeah, seriously. Kind of a dumb name, isn't it? What happens when I grow up?"

"Your name changes to Adult," they joked. "I'm Frisk. You sure you'll find another way?"

Kid just grinned at them.

"Yep. Go on, I'll catch up eventually."

Frisk turned around and walked away, bidding farewell. They were somewhat relieved to finally meet someone their age (or at least the equivalent) in the underground, even if he did hero-worship the person they had to avoid most. The next corridor held more ancient writings, and Frisk suspected that they weren't finished quite yet.

"Fearing our power, the humans declared war on us. They attacked suddenly and without mercy. In the end, however, it could hardly be called a proper war. We were overwhelmed by their strength, and not a single human soul was taken. Countless monsters were reduced to dust… now we survivors are trapped beneath the barrier. No monster soul is strong enough to cross it."

Frisk sighed. With every bit of monster history they read, they felt more and more saddened by the species' misfortune. It didn't help that- as much as they wanted to help- there was nothing that could be done outside of offering up their own soul, and they definitely didn't want to die, no matter how they felt. They wouldn't die in the dark all alone.

[SAVE FILE UPDATED]

For a moment it surprised them. Frisk hadn't "saved" in some time, and on reflection considered themselves lucky that they hadn't needed to return to their last save point. Working up their determination to continue, they stepped onto the next boardwalk stretching across the water far below (the path had led them quite high up). Another boardwalk was about thirty feet beneath them, but where that one led or came from was a mystery.

"Seems quiet again. Guess I'm further away from the flowing-"

Their monologue was cut off by a sudden sharp pain in their chest. Frisk's eyes almost bulged in shock as they looked down to see their soul floating a few inches in front of them again, still at 19/20 HP like before. What was different this time was the light-formed spear sticking diagonally through their torso.

"Ghhhk… ahhh…"

They sank to their knees, the world becoming an increasingly dark haze while a familiar sound of clanging footsteps rang through the air. Frisk slumped forward as everything went black.

"N-no… I can't… die…"


	25. Chapter 24: Purpose of Existence

Chapter 24: Purpose of Existence

 _"Chara! Hold on, Chara! You have to be strong, you are the future for humans and monsters!"_

That voice again. Just like when they'd died fighting Napstablook in the Ruins, Frisk could faintly hear a deep and caring male voice saying words of encouragement. They had no better idea of who it was, not to mention the name "Chara" still wasn't familiar to them, but it was enough to motivate them once again…

They regained consciousness and looked around, frightened. It took a second to realize that they were sitting on the dirt in front of the bridge where they'd been ambushed. Frisk clutched at their chest to find it had no wounds at all, like the attack had simply never happened.

"Oh, right… I guess it didn't happen…"

Not getting up, they took a moment to catch their breath from that traumatic experience- even though they had returned to their Save Point and effectively turned back time, the feeling was still fresh in their mind. Worse still, they realized that the attack had been able to damage their physical body rather than just their soul. Whoever it was, they were incredibly powerful.

"I'm pretty sure that was Undyne… I couldn't see where the attack came from… wait, hold on. The spear was pointing up through me, which means-"

Their thoughts turned to the lower boardwalk. She was likely waiting there to strike when they moved above her, and with that knowledge they could have better chances this time. They'd have to move quickly, though. Frisk stood up and clenched a fist, summoning the courage to continue.

"Here goes nothing…"

Taking much slower steps this time, they kept their eyes peeled on the surface they were walking on for any sign of a trap. They knew it was coming, and their suspicions were proven correct when the sound of a magic spear being generated hummed through the air. Frisk immediately jumped backwards as the spear pierced the boardwalk, glowing faintly. They'd noticed that just before it struck, the area it went through had turned a pale blue in color as if it were projecting its flight path.

 _"Now I'll be able to see where they'll hit!"_

They tore off running down the boardwalk. Undyne's metallic footsteps echoed below them as she ran along the lower one, throwing more spears up at her target. Frisk narrowly avoided each attack, not getting hit again. As the path began to split in a gridlike manner in many directions, they had to think quickly to decide where to go. As much as they didn't want to admit it, the correct way to go seemed to match the path that Undyne's boardwalk- which didn't split- took. She was apparently growing more and more frustrated, throwing her spears with such dedication it was a wonder that the bridge didn't just splinter apart. Frisk ran as fast as they could, but stopped when the path led to a dead end. All that was in front of them was a very long drop. Turning around, they saw that Undyne had gotten onto the upper level with them and blocked the way back.

"End of the line, human."

Casting their gaze up, Frisk dodged a final storm of spears that came straight down onto the bridge. They hadn't taken damage… but the bridge had. It snapped at the point of impact, and the human plummeted to the caverns below.

 _The ride home was uncomfortably silent for the most part. Frisk fidgeted around in their seat, unsure if they should say anything to their father. They had been picked up from school an hour after classes ended, having been in the principal's office with several other students who had been picking on them for weeks. As they couldn't bring themselves to fight back, they had simply told on the three bullies. Their father wasn't pleased._

 _"You never fought back?"_

 _"I couldn't, they were-"_

 _"I don't want excuses. I want a child who doesn't get pushed around without being assertive. You've always been a coward, but this isn't acceptable."_

 _"I told them to stop! I ignored everything they said, and even when they tried to hit me I dodged every punch!"_

 _He sighed heavily._

 _"Passiveness will get you nowhere in life. I expect more from you than this. You need to teach people to be_ afraid _of you. Otherwise you'll always get taken advantage of. Your mom and I made it in life with that kind of thinking."_

 _"Maybe that's why you two don't have any real friends…" they muttered._

 _"You watch your mouth! You're already in hot water here, understand?"_

Frisk lay unconscious at the bottom of the fall, unaware of anything except for their troubled past. Their eyes were squeezed shut as if to block out the world as much as possible, and they would occasionally twitch as they experienced the nightmare. The child was all alone with their memories, not waking up for another few minutes of torment.

"Ugh… am I dead again…? Where am I?"

They realized soon enough that they weren't dead, and shortly after that the memory of running from Undyne came back as well. Looking down, Frisk noticed that they'd landed in a large bed of golden flowers, just like when they fell from Mount Ebott. Their soul had been reduced to 7/20 HP and was in need of assistance. Reaching over to their bag- luckily, it seemed unharmed from the fall- they dug out the leftover burger from Grillby's and ate it. Their HP was fully restored.

"Right, gotta keep moving."

Frisk stood up and stretched, then took in the surroundings. The flowers were growing in a lone spot of dirt surrounded by shallow water. They appeared to be in some kind of dump, given the large piles of garbage nearby. Wading onward, they noticed yet another waterfall flowing into the dark abyss below, carrying bits of garbage with it in an endless cycle. More interestingly, however, was a lone monster standing at the edge of the waterfall, staring down. It barely noticed Frisk at all as they trudged past, but suddenly called out to them in a male voice that just didn't sound right, like his speech was distorted or he was underwater.

"Have you ever wondered what it'd be like to live in a world where everything's the same… but you aren't there?"

They abruptly stopped and turned to face the speaker, only to wish they'd just kept moving. While he didn't look very dangerous, per say, there was something extremely unsettling about him.

He closely resembled Kid (possibly the same kind of monster) from his bulbous head to his lack of arms to the spikes along his back and tail, but wore a checker-patterned shirt. What made him so creepy was the surreal look he had. His scales and most of his shirt were the same shade of lifeless gray, and every now and then his whole body would shiver for little apparent reason. The lizard monster took raspy, heaving breaths as he stared out from atop the waterfall.

"You mean, like… if you die?" Frisk asked, not sure what to do.

He absentmindedly kicked a bit of garbage into the water and watched it float away before answering them.

"Yes… maybe… no, not quite. If you were to change, and watch the world as you know it continue on while nobody recognizes you… where everything functions perfectly in your absence, but you can still see what's going on. Have you ever thought about a world like that?"

"…no, I guess I haven't."

For a moment, the monster seemed like he wanted to chuckle.

"Not enough people do. Taking existence for granted is a big mistake. It must be hard to imagine what it's like for some people... I'm sure it's a terrifying thought."

It finally looked at Frisk with a pair of large, round eyes. They were completely white and empty, no pupils to be seen. The human wanted to run away, understandably.

"N-now that I think about it, I guess it is scary to consider. How would something like that even happen to a person?"

"Maybe you wake up with a body that isn't yours, and only a few people- if anyone- know the truth." he croaked out. "With a new identity, what happens to your former purpose in life? Does it vanish? Change, maybe? Or do YOU change with it? How do you exist like that?"

Frisk was at a loss for words. The unknown monster seemed to realize that and smiled.

"You still have a lot to go through, right? Your reason for existing is still out there. Best of luck, human child. Please, forget about me. Don't think about this conversation."

"Who are you?"

Frisk blinked, and suddenly the monster was gone. They peered over the edge of the waterfall, but knew that there was no way he could have jumped in the split second that they had their eyes closed. He'd simply vanished into thin air, not unlike a certain skeleton they knew.

"There's no way I imagined that…"


	26. Chapter 25: Hopping Mad

Chapter 25: Hopping Mad

Trying to push that unnerving encounter out of their mind, Frisk kept moving through the dump. They dug out their phone, deciding to give Toriel another call (and because some words of encouragement would be nice). She didn't answer once again, to their dismay. Next, they called Papyrus. He had evidently returned from whatever errand he was taking care of.

"GREETINGS, HUMAN! HOW HAVE YOU BEEN?"

"Well, I just escaped Undyne again. Now I'm in some kind of dump."

"A DUMP, YOU SAY? IF MY MEMORY SERVES… YOU'RE NEAR HER HOUSE! I KNOW, WHY DON'T WE PAY HER A VISIT SOMETIME? SHE'D LOVE COMPANY."

"Uh… she's still trying to kill me."

"NONSENSE! I TOLD HER THAT THE REASON I COULDN'T CAPTURE YOU WAS BECAUSE YOUR SOUL CAN'T BE DAMAGED, SO AIMING FOR IT WOULD BE USELESS! SHE SHOULDN'T BE HUNTING YOU NOW!"

By then she obviously knew that wasn't the case, AND decided to start aiming for Frisk's body. They fought the urge to respond sarcastically; he seemed to mean well.

"HM… THE CONNECTION OUT IN THE DUMP IS NOT VERY GOOD. IT IS DIFFICULT TO HEAR YOU RIGHT NOW, SO PERHAPS YOU SHOULD CALL BACK LATER."

"yep, the reception's pretty garbage out there!" they heard in the background of the call.

"SHUT UP, SANS!"

Papyrus hung up, and Frisk was alone again with the rancid smell around them. They turned a corner and saw even more garbage everywhere. The only thing that stood out was a beat-up training dummy like the one they'd seen with Toriel, sitting by itself in the shallow water. Not giving it more than a glance, they proceeded toward a doorway at the end of the corridor. A way out, most likely. They stopped at the sound of a rather nasal voice shouting in an ornery tone.

"Ahahaha! Running away, human?"

They whirled around to see the dummy begin levitating toward them. Its face began contorting until a distinct pair of angry-looking eyes formed, staring Frisk down. When it spoke, its entire upper half separated from the bottom like a wide mouth, and sharp bits of broken glass formed teeth. The dummy moved with surprising speed, blocking the exit of the dump.

"You FOOL! You can't escape ME! Vengeance will be mine!"

"Vengeance? You know me?"

He cackled and bounced in the air.

"Of course I do. I'm a ghost that lives inside of a dummy! My cousin used to live in one too… until YOU came along! She thought she was in for a nice conversation with you and that goat woman, but… ooh, I'm burning up just THINKING about what you said!"

Frisk remembered that experience. They had felt strange talking to an inanimate dummy, but knowing it was inhabited by a ghost would have made it at least a little better. Still, they wondered what they'd done to make this dummy so angry.

"All I said was 'hello.'"

"Yeah, and that's it! You left her alone right after that! Horrible! Shocking! UNBELIEVABLE! Can you imagine how BORING it is in the Ruins?! She finally realized that after you abandoned her, and left the place like any self-respecting specter would! And now… AND NOW… I will have revenge!"

Indeed, their soul emerged as a fight began, identifying the creature as Mad Dummy and pointing out that, as a ghost, he was immune to physical damage. Fighting him wasn't an option.

"Foolish. Foolish! FOOLISH!"

He let out an angered growl, upon which smaller dummies emerged from the piles of garbage around Frisk. They scrunched themselves up and fired blasts of magic energy toward the human, who ducked under most of the projectiles but was grazed on the back by a few. They felt the affected spots sting slightly.

 _"Great, I can get hurt anywhere by these things…"_

"Is that the best you can do?! Fire again!"

Frisk jumped back up to their feet to dodge the next wave of attacks, thinking of how to escape while Mad Dummy hovered by the exit. They noticed a few stray magic attacks accidentally striking him, and he reacted in what appeared to be pain.

"Ow, you DUMMIES! Watch where you're aiming!"

He looked at the human with a startled expression, like he'd told them some big secret. They deduced that ghosts could be harmed by magic, and had an idea.

"Uh… hey, you! Forget I said anything!" Mad Dummy spat to no avail.

They began positioning themselves in front of him (he didn't seem to attack on his own, relying on the smaller dummies instead) and dodging just in time for the blasts from his minions to hit him. In response, he hovered around in a wavelike motion to stay out of harm's way.

"Give up, human! I'm going to defeat you and take your soul!"

Frisk swatted at one of the small dummies with their gloved hand, sending it flying backwards. Ultimately, however, all that did was slow it down.

"I'll use it to cross the barrier, then EVERYTHING I WANT WILL BE MINE!"

Mad Dummy was clearly beyond reasoning, and with each magic blast that hit him he grew even angrier. At one point, Frisk got too close to him and had to back away before he could bite them with his glass jaws.

"I'll stand in the window of a fancy store, for all to admire me! Oh… yeah, I guess that'll avenge my cousin. Sure."

He looked at the ground in momentary thought. His minions paused, awaiting orders.

"What was her name again…? Whatever. Whatever! WHATEVER!"

Mad Dummy resumed his movements, occasionally flinging cotton around in fury. The dummies kept firing at Frisk, though occasionally they'd just try to ram into them. Neither of the attacks worked very well, and the lead dummy suffered friendly fire even more.

"HEY! GUYS!"

They stopped moving and stared at Mad Dummy.

"Remember how I said NOT to shoot at me? Well… FAILURES! You're FIRED! You're all being REPLACED!"

Frisk watched the small dummies slink away in shame. Mechanical whirring sounds filled the air.

"Hahahaha! Now, I can show you my true power: relying on people who AREN'T garbage! Dummy Bots! Magic missile!"

Robotic dummies appeared from underneath the water and fired tiny rockets at Frisk, who dodged them just as easily as the magic blasts. They seemed to lock onto their soul, however, forcing the human to dodge a second time. The magic missiles struck Mad Dummy.

"Rrrrgh… dummy bots, try again!"

They repeated the attack, managing to hit Frisk's soul once but otherwise missing completely.

"N… no way… you're even worse than the OLD dummies! …who cares? Who cares? WHO CARES?! I don't need friends!"

He magically levitated an old knife from the floor and held it in the air.

"I've got KNIVES!"

Mad Dummy hurled it in the human's direction. They nimbly stepped aside and watched it sail off into the distance. He stared, dumbfounded.

"I'm… out of knives. But it doesn't matter! You can't hurt ME and I can't hurt YOU!"

He seemed to be smiling maniacally, and his movements became erratic.

"You'll be stuck fighting me… forever. Forever! FOREVER! AHAHAHAHAHA! HAHAHA- what?! What- ergh- what the heck is this?! Acid rain?!"

Large, whiteish drops were falling from above Mad Dummy and slightly burning his stuffed body.

"Oh forget this, I'm OUTTA HERE!"

He sped off through the doorway and was gone. Frisk looked up to find the source of the drops. It was a familiar ghost: Napstablook, the crying spirit from the Ruins. Slowly descending from where he was (having apparently been asleep), he looked at Frisk with a sigh.

"Oh… I interrupted you two, didn't I…? I just wanted to say hi… but you looked like you were having fun. Oh no…"

The ghost slowly floated away out of the dump. Frisk, at last able to leave as well, followed.


	27. Chapter 26: A Well-Deserved Breather

Chapter 26: A Well-Deserved Breather

They ended up following Napstablook to his house on account of being dead tired after running from Undyne- in the "weaponized" ballet shoes, no less- and battling Mad Dummy. Having somewhere to sit quietly (and they doubted that he'd attack them) greatly appealed to Frisk.

"I live up this way… meet you there."

As the ghost floated off, they looked around their current environment. It was a very tranquil place, all things considered. Glowing plants sprouted from the ground in several places, casting a calming blue-green light across the cave. A small pond sat in the middle, full of water that looked clean. In fact, Frisk only just realized how thirsty they were (they hadn't had anything to drink since they went to Grillby's) and took a few refreshing gulps out of the pond. Still very cold after wading through the dump's shallow water without proper footwear, they jogged a few laps around the pond to warm up, then followed Napstablook to his house.

Frisk got a quick glance at his neighbors' homes as well. To the left was a building resembling a large, angry fish, with artificial fins and scales decorating its exterior in a bright blue display. They assumed this was where Undyne lived due to the Snowdin shopkeeper's comment on her being a fish monster. Fortunately, nobody seemed to be there at the moment.

Napstablook's residence itself was rather bland-looking, little more than a white cylinder with a slightly curved top and one small window. Directly beside it was another house, identical save for its reddish color. Judging the slightly unkempt appearance of it, nobody had been there for a while. Frisk called attention to it as they followed the ghost.

"Hey, who lives there?"

"Oh… my cousin used to… but he left a while ago."

He didn't seem to want to talk about it more and floated aside to let his guest get a better look at his house.

"It's not much, but make yourself at home."

It really wasn't much, consisting of a single room that was mostly empty. There was a refrigerator, a TV which was playing some kind of game show, and a desk with a computer and several stacks of CD cases. Dust covered the wooden floor, it was incredibly dark, and there were cobwebs everywhere (though Frisk suspected that ghosts preferred such conditions). One web, interestingly, held what looked like a flyer for a bake sale on it. They couldn't help but smile, recalling the spiders in the Ruins. Were these ones related to them?

"Do you wanna listen to some tunes… or something?" Napstablook asked hollowly, suddenly wearing headphones and navigating a music-sharing forum on his computer (he didn't have arms and seemed to move the mouse telekinetically). "Or if you're hungry I can give you a ghost sandwich… I just had lunch, but I wouldn't mind…"

"I'm fine, thank you."

"Okay… after a meal I like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage. It's kind of a family tradition. Do you want to join me…?"

The floor didn't look very comfortable, but they didn't want to be rude to the ghost.

"Sure, do we just lie down?"

"Right, that's it… here we go."

Frisk sat down and leaned back, staring up at the ceiling. Napstablook floated right beside them, and the two were silent. Possibly due to their recent battle draining them immensely, the human felt very relaxed in that moment. They closed their eyes and gently sighed, letting the darkness of the room wash over them.

Frisk felt as though they were staring into space for some reason, and they took the time to reflect on their journey so far. Even though the adventure had only taken about three days up to that point (or at least they thought, since they'd lost track of time), it felt like they had spent months underground with all that had happened. Those fabled permanently red trees growing at the top of Mount Ebott seemed so far away now… their mission was still clear, wasn't it? Find the trees, collect a branch, return home to show their parents that they weren't a coward. It should have been simple- it should STILL be simple. Yet the more time they spent in the underground the more detached they became to that goal.

They'd met so many new people already... Napstablook, who they decided just needed some company. Toriel, overprotective but well-meaning. The monsters in the Ruins that had seemed scary until Frisk got to know them a bit better. Sans and Papyrus, a rather amusing double-act who each had their own likeable qualities. The easily distracted yet somehow charming Royal Guard canines. Monster Kid, who they could identify with a bit more than everyone else thanks to their similar ages. Even the monsters in Waterfall didn't seem that bad (though they had to admit, some of them were quite strange indeed). Never before had Frisk been among such kind people.

And yet, they had to remind themselves that for all the positives, there were still serious issues. Flowey was allegedly lurking around, they'd been attacked multiple times across all three areas, Undyne had to still be hunting for them, a vengeful ghost had recently tried to take their soul, and to top it all off they'd experienced what death felt like (even if just for a few seconds) twice already. And King Dreemurr still had to be taken into consideration, as well as that "Asgore" person Toriel had mentioned (they'd learned nothing of him). The Barrier, their escape from the underground, was far off in the distance. Could they make it there in the end?

Frisk sat up and rubbed their forehead. They'd been laying down for nearly ten minutes, and time was of the essence. No more reminiscing about the people they'd met; staying focused on escape and those red trees was the primary objective.

"Well, that was nice…" Napstablook said in a slightly more cheerful voice. "Thank you…"

"No problem. I should get going… what're you going to do now?"

"I have to tend to the snails on the farm."

They couldn't help but be curious.

"Tend to them? Like, get them away from the crops?"

He shook his entire body.

"No, the snails are what my farm is known for. Blook Family Snail Farm, it's called… I'm the only employee now. These days, we don't get a lot of business any more. Our main customer was a nice lady, but she disappeared one day… now it's just some hairy guy who shows up once a month."

Frisk tried to resist a giggle, and luckily succeeded.

"Sorry to hear that… well, I'm going now. Take care, Napstablook."

"Goodbye… oh… I don't know your name."

"I'm Frisk!"

The ghost gave them a tiny smile, nodding to show that he'd remember it.


	28. Chapter 27: History, Part 3

Chapter 27: History, Part 3

It took Frisk a moment to find the way out of that neighborhood, but soon enough they were on the path once again, taking a brief detour to visit the local shopkeeper- a very old turtle monster. He was dressed like an explorer, but given his age he likely hadn't done any exploring in years.

"Wah hah hah! You must be Frisk the human! C'mon in, kid, have a look at some of this junk I've got for sale!" he exclaimed in a wizened voice.

They stared at him, bewildered.

"You know my name?"

"'Course I do. Undyne told me all about you. Ah, wipe that weird look off yer face, she's nowhere around here."

Frisk was hardly put at ease.

"How do I know you won't try to attack me, or call for her?"

The turtle just smiled and laughed.

"A cautious one, eh? Always wary of trouble. I like that. Well, as you can see, these old bones of mine are in no fightin' condition. And Undyne's a smart lass, she's the Spear of Justice! If she can't track down a human by herself then she sure ain't deserving of that title. The name's Gerson, by the way."

"How do you know so much about her?"

Gerson winked at the human child, leaning forward to whisper even though they were alone in his cave.

"Thing is, I used to be a famous hero too. 'Gerson, Hammer of Justice' they called me. Undyne followed me around everywhere as a little girl, tryin' to help fight crime. Although, she'd normally just end up attacking a mailman or something… anyway, I helped train her to become as strong as she is now!"

Frisk was intrigued to say the least.

"You say she told you about me?"

"Damn right she did. I'd watch my back if I were you, kid… or maybe buy some items to keep me safe! Wah hah hah!"

"Yeah, she seems pretty serious…"

Gerson's expression got even giddier, which looked rather strange on such an old turtle.

"Now, here's somethin' funny… keep it between us, will ya? When she came by to tell me she found a human… she was all sorts of excited! Kept goin' on about how her training would finally pay off, and she'd make me proud at last. Bless her heart, I don't think she'd ever act like that around anyone else…"

That description was quite a far cry from the merciless armored titan who'd stabbed Frisk to death, but they decided not to think about it too much.

"Right… so, what've you got for sale?"

"Ah ha! Why not take a look, human?"

Gerson set a few items down in front of them. Various rusted trinkets and the like, none of which were familiar at all to Frisk, created something of a mess on the ground. The only two things they could recognize were an old, tattered notebook and a pair of dusty glasses. Their soul emerged and pointed them out as a weapon- how a book would be good for attacking was beyond their comprehension- and a piece of defensive gear, respectively.

"Best keep that heart hidden, kiddo," the turtle said with another wink.

Frisk got a better inspection of the items. The notebook, according to their soul, wasn't very strong offensively and was therefore not worth being used as a weapon (they decided to buy it anyway; having something on hand to read could at least be entertaining). The glasses, meanwhile, would apparently make it easier to predict where enemy attacks would strike. Frisk paid for the items and slid the glasses onto their face. It was somewhat disorienting, as they'd never needed them before. Still, anything to make fights easier… too bad it added yet another layer to their garish outfit of a bandana, tutu, single pink glove, and ballet shoes.

"Lookin' good there, kid. Maybe Undyne won't recognize ya! Heh heh…"

As they were turning to leave, they noticed something painted on the wall of Gerson's cave. It was a strange black symbol: three triangles lined up in an alternating up-and-down pattern, with a black circle above them and what looked like two wings sprouting from the circle. It looked very familiar to Frisk, but they couldn't quite determine where they'd seen it before.

"Hey, what's this thing?"

"Oh, that? It's the Delta Rune… the emblem of the Kingdom of Monsters. Yeah, that's really what our kingdom's called. Ol' Fluffybuns in the castle can't name for beans, I tell ya!"

"…Fluffybuns?"

Gerson chuckled.

"King Asgore. There's a story for why he's called that, but… I can't seem to remember it. Maybe come back some time, I might've figured it out by then."

Frisk nodded, acknowledging that King Dreemurr and Asgore, as Toriel had mentioned, were apparently one and the same. "What does the Delta Rune mean, then?"

"You know… that's a good question. It's been around so long, nobody's really sure what its original meaning was. Not even the King, and he lived to see its creation! Some people think it's a prophecy of some kind… those triangles represent the monsters trapped underground, and that there circle with wings is an 'angel' who has seen the surface world and is here to free us all. Others think the 'angel' is actually an angel of death, descended to liberate monsters from the mortal realm. Either way… the underground will go empty because of it."

Gerson was silent for a moment. He let out a sigh and grinned at Frisk.

"Well, I've taken up enough of yer time. Better hurry on out, before Undyne comes lookin' for ya."

"O-okay. Thank you!"

They exited his cave and continued walking, finding even more ancient text on the walls. Frisk, by now, was both unnerved and enthralled with monster history. They squinted in the growing darkness of the caves to read.

"Defeated and fearing for our lives, we surrendered to the humans. They forced us into a cave beneath this mountain, upon which seven of their greatest wizards cast a powerful magic barrier to seal us inside. Anything can enter, but only a being with a phenomenally powerful soul may leave through it."

Frisk remembered Papyrus saying something to that effect before leaving Snowdin. The thought occurred that they should give him another call sometime.

"There is but one way to reverse this spell, according to research: if a combined power equivalent to seven human souls attacks the Barrier, it will be destroyed. But this cursed place has no entrances or exits… no human could ever come here. As such, we shall remain trapped forever."

Clearly, humans could enter through that hole at the top of Mount Ebott. And there was allegedly a way out at the end of King Asgore's castle. Judging by what Toriel had said, Frisk hadn't been the first human to fall down, either.

They wondered how many had come before them, and whether or not those humans were still alive…


	29. Chapter 28: Confrontation

Chapter 28: Confrontation

Navigating the next few sections of Waterfall was quite frustrating, as the puzzles there were tedious to the extreme. Both involved having to light up very dark corridors to find the way forward, and Frisk found themselves getting lost more often than not. Adding to their fortune was a group of Moldbyggs sleeping in various areas, getting startled and attacking whenever they got too close, even- especially- when it was accidental. At one point they took a wrong turn and wound up in a completely incomprehensible little cave that they hesitated to call a town, as it had no buildings and the only inhabitants were some kind of cartoonish white canine/feline hybrids named Temmies. These monsters spoke in extremely disjointed sentences, sounding like the average human four-year-old, and there was something about their cheerful but vacant stares that gave Frisk the creeps. They didn't spend much time there, to say the least, leaving the Temmies to their own devices (of which there were very few; they didn't seem particularly smart).

Finally, after what felt like hours of walking in the dark, they made it to a lighter section of the cavern. The familiar moist dirt was underfoot again, and the path branched into two directions once more. Frisk took the right route, only to come to a dead end with a small patch of tall grass on the side.

"Well, great. Just have to go back-"

"Behind you," a menacing voice growled.

They spun around to find themselves being stared down by Undyne again, still clad in her full armor. She had a magic spear ready and pointed it straight at them, not moving. Frisk didn't have to look back to remember that they were cornered. Suddenly, she started to speak.

"…seven. Seven human souls. That's how many we need before King Asgore Dreemurr… becomes a god. With his power, he will destroy the Barrier and take back the surface world, subjecting the humans to the same torment we've all had to deal with for so long."

Frisk was frantically thinking of a way to escape. They were too intimidated, it seemed, to use their Save File, so that option was out for the time being. Now, they were all alone with Undyne.

"…six. We have six souls already. All we need is yours. Understand, human? This is your only chance at redemption for us. Give it up… or I'll tear your soul from your body."

 _"Crap! Has she killed six people?! Did they all die here?!"_

She leveled the spear and charged straight at Frisk, who squeezed their eyes shut.

"Wait, Undyne! I'll help you fight!"

The sound of her footsteps abruptly stopped when a loud rustling and a voice came from nearby. Frisk opened their eyes to see Kid standing directly between the two, evidently oblivious to what was going on. He smiled widely at the human.

"YO! You did it! Undyne's RIGHT in front of you! You've got a front-row seat to her fight, Frisk!"

His excited chatter died down, and he looked back and forth in confusion.

"Wait… who's she fighting- ow!"

Undyne had grabbed him by the cheek and was marching off with Kid in tow as he wondered aloud if she would tell his parents where he'd been. With the coast clear thanks to that lucky break, Frisk backtracked and took the left path. Fortunately, it didn't lead to a dead end but rather a bridge over a steep drop to the cavern floor below. They hurried across, only for a familiar voice to call out to them just as they reached the other side.

"Yo, hold on a second!"

"Kid? Where'd Undyne go?"

The lizard monster ran up to them, smiling bashfully. He clearly wanted to say something.

"So… I'm not supposed to be here, but I have to ask… you're a human, aren't you, Frisk?"

They didn't answer, but they hardly needed to. The look of sad understanding in Kid's eyes showed them that he knew. It was clear that neither of the children wanted to be in their current situation.

"Man… I should've guessed it… Undyne says I have to stay away from you. So, like, does that make us enemies or something? B-because I kinda suck at making those…"

Frisk didn't know what to say. Their mouth was incredibly dry at the moment due to stress.

"I have an idea… yo, say something mean so we can hate each other."

They just shook their head at him, fighting the sudden lump beginning to form in their throat.

"So I have to, then? All right, I'll give it a try… I… I hate your guts."

Saying it clearly made Kid feel worse than he already did, and Frisk wished for all the world that humans and monsters didn't need to be fighting. They could have been friends with him… if only.

"Man, I'm… I'm such a turd… guess I'll go home now."

He dejectedly turned around and began walking away, but his foot snagged on one of the boards in the bridge. Kid fell and grabbed onto the edge with nothing but his teeth at the last second, dangling his legs toward the abyss below. A look of absolute terror flooded his eyes, and frightened whimpers squeaked out from his mouth. Before they could react, Undyne showed up at the other end of the bridge with a spear in hand, beginning to stomp across.

 _"Oh no… what should I do?!"_

Despite the overwhelming circumstance, Frisk was able to focus their thoughts enough to realize what was happening. Undyne didn't seem to be in much of a hurry, and while they could have run off while she was traversing the bridge… their thoughts turned to Kid, hanging on for dear life. After all that had happened, they saw him flailing about in an attempt to swing himself to safety, but his grip seemed to be failing. In that moment, they understood what to do. He likely didn't have the same death-defying ability that they did, so there really was only one thing to do for him. Frisk dashed forward and pulled Kid up onto the bridge. Undyne had stopped walking, taken aback by the snap decision.

"…Frisk…" he whispered, seemingly stunned that they'd rescued him. They grinned at the lizard monster.

"Don't worry about it. You've helped me out already."

Kid nodded and turned to face Undyne with a shaky glare.

"Y-y-yo… dude… if you wanna hurt my friend… y-you'll have to go through me first… got it?"

She stared at the two for a second, as if she didn't quite believe what was happening. Undyne's spear vanished, and she walked the other way back into Waterfall. Kid looked like he was ready to faint with nervousness, while Frisk was touched by his action. She could have easily forced her way past, yet somehow the small lizard had dissuaded her from continuing the hunt for the moment.

"…she's gone," Kid said after a brief silence. "Yo, you really saved my skin just now."

"Didn't I already say you've helped me out? Of course I'd help a friend."

He blushed a bit, chuckling with the human.

"I guess being enemies was just a nice thought," Frisk continued. "Will you be okay going home now? Your parents must be worried sick."

"You're probably right… I'll be on my way then."

They nodded and gave him a thumbs-up. "See you around, yo."

"Definitely! But… will you be okay? I don't think you've seen the last of Undyne…"

Frisk knew he was right, but didn't want to scare him.

"Don't worry about me, I've already escaped her a few times. This'll be easy. Oh, I know! Take a look at this."

They showed Kid their phone number as an official friendship offering.

"You can call me in a little while, and then you'll see that I'm fine!"

He positively beamed.

"Yo, that's a great idea! I'll be sure to remember it. Take care of yourself, Frisk!"

The two parted ways once again, with the human traveling across the bridge and into the last part of Waterfall. Now, with the support of yet another new friend, they would make it past Undyne and continue on their way. Their soul swelled with energy in response to the courageous feeling in them.

[SAVE FILE UPDATED]

Frisk was filled with Determination.


	30. Chapter 29: Spear of Justice

Chapter 29: Spear of Justice

 **Author's Note: Wow, just about 3500 views! Thanks a lot, everyone! ^_^**

According to a sign posted on the trail, Frisk was entering the intersection between Waterfall and the next area of the underground, Hotland. The temperature was becoming less cold, and the humidity decreased to their relief. They could see a large red glow in the distance, possibly due to heat (if Hotland's name was anything to go by). Frisk stared up at a very large, sharp-pointed pillar of rock with a tunnel leading through it. Their way forward was right in front of them… but Undyne was perched at the top, staring down. Frisk clenched a fist, prepared for anything.

"With your seventh soul, this world will be transformed. This is the beginning of a new era for monsterkind. First, however… I will explain the tragic tale of our people. That way you can exit this mortal realm while understanding the situation. It all started long ago, when…"

They almost tuned out of her speech, well aware of monster history thanks to Gerson and the Waterfall writings. However, she suddenly stopped talking.

"…no… you know what?"

Undyne stomped one of her feet against the rock she stood on, causing a loud bang to echo through the air.

"SCREW IT! Why should I tell you that story when you're about to **DIE?!** NGAAAAAAH!"

As she roared in anger, she removed her helmet and threw it to the floor, revealing her face for the first time. Although they'd been told she was a fish monster, they somehow had a different idea of her appearance in mind.

Undyne's face looked like the halfway point between a fish and a human. Slanted, ovular eyes- pure yellow in color, with black pupils- glared at Frisk with a fierce intensity. Or rather, one eye, as her left was covered with an eyepatch. Fins sprouted on either side of her head and were flared outward aggressively, both the same shade of dark blue as her skin. She lacked a nose, and her mouth was locked into a snarl, revealing sharp yellow teeth. Frisk noticed something even stranger- despite her being a fish, she had hair. Smooth eyebrows were furrowed in to make her angered stare seem even more furious. In fact, what they'd assumed was a decorative red cloth extending from her helmet was in actuality a long, flowing ponytail. She had been described as a fearless warrior, and definitely looked the part.

"YOU! You're standing in the way of everyone's hopes and dreams, scum! If you weren't so damn resilient we could all be free now!"

Her voice had changed drastically. Whereas before it was a metallic growl, it now sounded fierce and proud, determined to stop Frisk at all costs. Even the way she spoke almost sounded dramatic... like it had been rehearsed.

"Alphys' history books made me think humans were cool, with their giant robots and flowery sword-wielding princesses!"

Frisk wasn't sure what she was talking about, or what kind of "history" books monsters had regarding humans. They did recall hearing the name Alphys, though; Sans and Papyrus had mentioned her.

"But you? You're just a coward! Hiding behind that kid so you could run away again is low even for you! And let's not forget your goody-two-shoes shtick!"

She was evidently referring to how they'd try to be kind to the monsters, and spoke in a taunting, overly childish voice.

"Ooh, you're making such a difference by saying nice things to random strangers, aren't ya? Don't make me laugh! You'd be more helpful to everyone here if YOU WERE DEAD!"

Undyne held a fist to her breastplate and closed one of her eyes in an even more dramatic flair.

"Right now, I can feel everyone's hearts beating together… we're all united, and you're the only thing between us and freedom! Now, time to end this! Here I come!"

Frisk backed away as she leapt from the pillar's top and crashed down in front of them, brandishing a spear. Their soul emerged, ready for battle, and they hoped that the glove and ballet shoes would be able to fend her off. Somehow, they got the feeling that she wouldn't be talked out of fighting.

"Oh yeah, I came prepared this time!"

Undyne's hands emitted a dark green glow, and suddenly Frisk's soul changed to be the same color. A large, transparent blue shield appeared in front of them, hovering over their now-green soul.

"When you're green, you can't run away. If you don't learn to face danger head-on, you won't last a SECOND against me! En garde, human!"

She began hurling magic spears at Frisk, who found that the shield completely deflected the attacks. However, it could only face one direction, and Undyne was curving her spears in midair to take advantage of that.

"For years, we've dreamed of a happy ending… where we could all escape to the surface… at last, sunlight is within our reach! We've heard stories of what it feels like to stand in it!"

Just as their soul had told them, the glasses bought from Gerson allowed them to easily see where she'd strike next. Noticing a brief lull in her attacks, Frisk lunged forward and swung their gloved fist at Undyne. It glowed bright red as it connected with her armor, which (surprisingly) received a sizeable dent. She staggered away with a growl.

"Hmph. Not bad! But how will you handle THIS?"

She ripped a large chunk of rock out of the pillar with her bare hands, throwing it at Frisk and forcing them to roll aside. They didn't want to risk trying to block it with their soul's new shield.

"I won't let you snatch that future away from us!"

Frisk, as much as they didn't want to fight, began moving in to strike again. Undyne drew a finger across her neck tauntingly.

"Honstly, I'm doing you a favor. No human's ever gotten past Asgore, it's better for you to die here than make it to him! And that's EXACTLY what's gonna happen!"

"You couldn't catch me before," they replied, throwing a kick with the ballet shoes. "I'm not losing here!"

Their kick hit her in the stomach (amazing, given how much taller she was), and another dent appeared. Frisk was astounded by their apparent strength. A similar thing had happened with Toriel; were their weapons really that potent… or were monster souls as weak as the cave writings said?

"Ugh… Alphys was right when she said humans are determined… well, I'm determined too! Determined to end this RIGHT NOW! Just die already, you little brat!"

Some of her spears changed in color from light blue to yellow, and Frisk soon realized the difference: the latter would approach their shield but jump to the other side to try and strike them from behind, making dodging and blocking an even greater struggle. They had taken quite a bit of damage, and ate the other Unisicle to keep themselves going. Still… the more they hit Undyne, the more worn-down she became. Eventually, they jumped up and punched her squarely in the chest. This seemed to do the trick, as she coughed in pain and clutched at her armor, which by then was severely damaged from Frisk's attacks.

"You're… more powerful… than I thought…" she heaved, gasping for air. Her body was quivering, and began slowly turning to dust like Toriel's had.

"So…" she whispered grimly. "This is how it ends… I have no regrets… no. NO! I can't lose! Everyone… Alphys, Asgore, Papyrus… they're all counting on me to succeed! In the name of everyone's hopes and dreams, I will defeat you!"

Frisk's soul detected a strange power within Undyne. It was actually similar to their own "determination" that kept them alive. She stopped turning to dust and shakily got back into her fighting stance, rushing straight at them again. They swiftly dodged her spear strike and punched her in the side, beginning to feel unsure about this. Undyne staggered but stayed on her feet, forcing a pained smile onto her face.

"S-see? See how strong we can be when we believe in ourselves? I'm… not done yet…"

Her continued attacks gradually began slowing down, and it looked like each movement for her was a herculean effort with how tired she was. Undyne's body was beginning to undergo a change. Not becoming dust, but something worse: she seemed to be slowly melting, armor and all, into a shapeless white puddle. It was actually quite horrific to watch, but she didn't acknowledge it.

"Undyne, your body-"

"SHUT UP! I DON'T NEED YOU PITYING ME!" she screamed, her voice breaking. As if being commanded, her body reformed a bit and she kept charging, only for Frisk to hit her again. By now they were practically doing it just to put her out of her misery.

"I… I can't die… I won't die… won't… A-Alphys…"

The strain- possibly from the sheer amount of energy her soul was outputting- was too much for her, and she had fully melted within another minute. Frisk's soul announced that it had jumped from "LOVE 1" to "LOVE 4" and gained a great deal of "EXP," the "experience" needed to love, as Flowey had said. If they were supposed to feel a sense of achievement, they were failing spectacularly at it.

Struggling to catch their breath, and still focused on the slimy puddle that was Undyne's remains, Frisk stumbled through Waterfall's exit. All had gone deadly quiet around them until their phone suddenly rang. They nearly jumped out of their skin at the noise, and felt any confidence they still had get suctioned away upon seeing that Papyrus was the one calling. Frisk didn't answer, letting him leave a message.

"GREETINGS, FRISK HUMAN! THIS IS THE GREAT PAPYRUS. IT'S BEEN A WHILE SINCE WE LAST SPOKE, AND I HOPE YOU'RE DOING OKAY. I'M CALLING TO INVITE YOU TO UNDYNE'S HOUSE! I HAVE A COOKING LESSON WITH HER SOON, AND I JUST KNOW THAT IF YOU'RE HERE THEN THE TWO OF YOU CAN LEARN TO BE FRIENDS! I HOPE TO SEE YOU HERE! HM… WHY ISN'T SHE ANSWERING THE DOOR…?"

They didn't have it in them to speak to him. How could they, after killing his mentor? And what about Kid? He'd stood up to Undyne in Frisk's defense, but how would he react to her death at their hands? Two of the nicest people they'd met underground… and they had just failed both of them.

"hey kid, you okay there?"

Sans was right in front of them all of a sudden, almost looking concerned (his mouth was still stuck in a wide grin) for the first time since they met him.

"…she's gone, isn't she?"

They couldn't look him in the eyes, afraid of what else he'd say. Frisk knew, deep down, that they could never forgive themselves for taking away one of the two skeletons' friends, even though it was in self-defense.

 _"Unless… there's another way. Yes, there might be another way! What was that she'd said about not running while my soul is green?"_

Looking up at Sans, they knew what had to be done.

"I'm going to fix all this."

Frisk knew he wouldn't understand what they were talking about, but it didn't matter to them. They concentrated all the "determination" in their soul to restart from their Save Point before battling Undyne. Just like with Toriel, they'd find a way to spare her.

Strangely, as the world began to disappear around them, they could have sworn they saw Sans nodding in encouragement.


	31. Chapter 30: Amends

Chapter 30: Amends

When Frisk opened their eyes, they were standing near Undyne's rocky perch, just as expected. Their soul was back at "LOVE 1, 0 EXP," and Undyne was still alive. The battle began in the same way as it had before.

 _"Can't run away with a green soul… I'll have to find a way to make her change me back, then. I can try to outrun her after that."_

Most of her attacks were exactly the same as the first time, so blocking them with the Green Soul shield was no problem. The more unsuccessful attempts she made, the more frustrated she seemed to grow. It only made her more furious that Frisk wasn't fighting back at all, and it looked like she was regretting turning them green; they were putting that shield to effective use.

"Damn it, just give up!"

In a sudden lapse of judgement, Undyne had played right into Frisk's hands by turning their soul red again to get rid of the shield. Immediately they sprinted past her toward Hotland.

"I can't believe it worked! Now, um, what do I do?"

They hadn't thought that far ahead, and decided that if they just kept running they could find a place to hide. Frisk passed by Sans, sleeping behind yet another desk as they entered the next area, and heard Undyne stop behind them to yell at him for a moment.

"Whew, it's pretty hot all of a sudden…"

Waterfall's cold air had been replaced to an extreme degree by Hotland's sweltering heat. Apparently, though, they weren't the only one to think that. Undyne had given chase again, but her metal armor caused her to get too hot to do anything more than walk quickly. Soon enough, though, she flopped to the ground in exhaustion from the heat.

Frisk stopped running and looked at her. They weren't going to let Undyne die of heat stroke, but she seemed far too heavy for them to carry back to Waterfall. A solution soon came to mind, however: Sans' desk (they made a mental note to ask what his job there was later) was set up near a water cooler for incoming Hotland visitors. They took a paper cup and filled it quickly, running over to Undyne's collapsed form. Hoping this would work, they dumped the water onto her face and stood back. That seemed to be enough, as she hesitantly stood up and looked at Frisk with a confused expression. She didn't say anything, instead just turning around and walking back toward Waterfall without trying to attack them anymore.

"That went well…"

Papyrus' phone call came again, exactly the same as last time. Frisk promised to be there to visit Undyne with him. Rather than try to put more distance between them and her, they decided that if they could become friendly with her, things would be much easier. One less person to worry about on their way to the Barrier and to freedom.

The trek back through Waterfall was mostly uneventful. No monsters were around to hinder their progress, and Undyne didn't show up again. Papyrus was waiting for them outside her house when they arrived, listening to the sound of someone playing piano (quite badly) inside.

"THERE YOU ARE, FRISK! I WAS WONDERING IF YOU'D FORGOTTEN! OH, YOU ARE WEARING A TUTU? I DIDN'T THINK YOU'D LIKE ONE OF THOSE!"

"Uh, yeah… I'm here and ready to hang out."

"THAT'S THE SPIRIT! I HAVE A PLAN TO MAKE THE TWO OF YOU GREAT FRIENDS. FIRST, I'LL GIVE HER THIS," he showed them a gold-colored bone with a red ribbon tied around it, "AND SAY IT'S A GIFT FROM YOU!"

Papyrus knocked on the door. The piano abruptly stopped as Undyne came to answer, wearing a black tank top and blue jeans with a more casual pair of boots on. Seeing such a human-like outfit was a little strange for Frisk. She gave him a toothy grin, not noticing them behind him.

"Hey there! Ready for your personal training session?"

"YOU BET! AND I EVEN BROUGHT A FRIEND ALONG WITH ME!"

He stepped aside to let Frisk and Undyne see each other. An odd cringe passed over her face.

"Why don't. You two. Come in?" she forced out through clenched teeth.

Cackling excitedly, Papyrus walked inside after her with Frisk right behind him. They looked around Undyne's home with surprise at how normal it seemed. Like Napstablook's and the skeletons', it seemed to consist mostly of a single large room. The floor was tiled in a blue and yellow checkerboard pattern, and had two large purple rugs laying on it- one in a corner and the other near the center of the room under a wooden table with a fish-shaped doily. The piano she'd been playing stuck out rather drastically, set up against a wall despite it not quite fitting in with the rest of the room. Against the back wall was her kitchen, with a sink, cabinet, stove, and refrigerator. There was one door beside it, presumably leading to her bedroom.

"MY FRIEND BROUGHT A GIFT FOR YOU ON THEIR OWN! THEY'RE TOO SHY TO GIVE IT TO YOU IN PERSON, THOUGH. HERE!"

Undyne took the golden bone from Papyrus with a frown.

"Um… I'll go put it with the others."

She briefly opened a drawer and dropped the bone in. Frisk could see several identical ones inside with it. Clearly, she didn't want to upset Papyrus.

"So… are we ready to start your lesson?"

The skeleton responded quickly.

"WHOOPSY DOOPSY! I JUST REALIZED, I HAVE TO GO TO THE BATHROOM. BE RIGHT BACK!"

Papyrus then ran straight toward her window and did a frontflip through it, shattering the glass. Undyne didn't seem to care, though, as she was now staring at Frisk.

"…so… what are YOU doing here?"

"I came with Papyrus to hang out with you."

She glared.

"Ohhh, is that it? Or do you just wanna rub your victory in my face? Are you tryin' to humiliate me even further?!"

"No, of course not."

"Then why ARE you here? Unless… wait a minute, I get it… you think I'm gonna be friends with you, huh? That we'll get to go out and play around in the fields of friendship together! Well, not happening! You might've gotten on Papyrus' good side, but I'm not buying your friendly act. If you weren't my houseguest, I'd want to beat you up right here! You're the enemy of everyone's hopes and dreams, remember? I'll never be your friend, now get out of my house."

Suddenly, Papyrus was sticking his head through the broken window.

"DANG! WHAT A SHAME… I'D HOPED YOU TWO COULD BE FRIENDS. BUT I GUESS UNDYNE JUST ISN'T UP TO THE CHALLENGE!"

With that, he ran off somewhere, leaving the Royal Guard's captain stunned.

"What- hold on- challenge?! He thinks I can't be friends with you?! Grrr, I'll show him!"

Her demeanor had completely reversed, and she now had a much kinder (yet somehow still aggressive) look on her face.

"I could make friends with a wimpy loser like you any day! Now sit down, I'll get you somethin' to drink! We're not just gonna be friends, human… we're gonna be BESTIES, got it?! You'll like me so much you won't think of ANYONE ELSE! It's the perfect revenge!"

Frisk took a seat at the table, a bit intimidated by her sudden change. She set a few drinks out on the counter.

"Let's see here… hot chocolate? Wait, I forgot to buy more… maybe I should stop, Asgore always gets marshmallows in his beard. There's soda, but… nah, that's no good. It rots your teeth, your mind, your FIGHTING SPIRIT-"

"Why do you have it then?" Frisk accidentally blurted out. She didn't seem angry, though, instead just blushing slightly and nudging the soda out of sight.

"I-I'll make you some tea. Be patient, it'll take a moment for the water to boil."

Once it was ready, she handed Frisk a cup and sat down on the other side of the table.

"Careful, it's hot… not THAT hot, just drink it already!"

They took a sip. It was, in fact, "that hot." Their tongue was burning from it, but aside from that it was surprisingly good.

"It's great!"

"Of course! Nothing but the best for my ABSOLUTELY PRECIOUS FRIEND!"

"Heh… what flavor is this? I've never tasted it."

She beamed slightly.

"Golden flower tea," Undyne replied, to their slight shock. They could have been drinking one of Flowey's relatives (if there were other talking golden flowers). "Asgore's favorite, you know… come to think of it, you sorta remind me of him. You're both TOTAL WEENIES!"

"Are you and King Asgore friends?"

Her expression mellowed out somewhat.

"Yeah, ever since I was little he's been nice to me… I was pretty hotheaded back then. Once, when I wanted to prove how strong I was, I tried to fight him. Emphasis on TRIED. I couldn't land a single blow on him, and to make it worse he never fought back… the weird thing is, after that he asked me if I wanted to know how to beat him."

They listened to her curiously, still struggling to forget about the sight of her literally melting before them.

"I said yes, and from then on he started training me with help from the previous captain of the Royal Guard."

"Gerson? I met him earlier! He's the one that gave me these glasses," they replied, pointing to their face. Undyne chuckled.

"Maybe they helped you dodge my spears… anyway, after a while I'd grown strong enough to knock him down at last. For a second, I was afraid he'd be mad, but he congratulated me for it! Man, I've never seen someone so happy to get their butt kicked. After that, he made me the head of the Royal Guard. Now I get to train dorks to fight! Like Papyrus! Uh… don't tell him I said that."

"You must've trained him well," Frisk commented. "He knew what he was doing when I fought him."

She seemed worried.

"D-did you hurt him?!"

"No no no, of course not. He's a nice person."

Undyne was relieved, but then her expression became more somber.

"Yeah… to be honest, though… I'm not sure if he'll ever get to be in the Royal Guard. It's not because he's weak, he's actually pretty freaking tough! It's just… he's too innocent and nice! I mean, really! He was supposed to capture you, and he ended up making friends with you instead! I can't let him get into a real battle! He'd just get ripped into little smiling pieces…"

"Is that why you're teaching him how to cook, then? So he can do something else with his life? I don't see him as a fighter either."

"That's exactly it… wait a second. Papyrus… his cooking lesson… that was supposed to be right now!"

"Oops, sorry to interrupt it-"

"And if HE'S not here," she continued, "then YOU'LL have to take it instead!"

Undyne jumped up from the table and dashed over to the counter, dramatically sweeping the drinks onto the floor. She opened a different cabinet and placed tomatoes, a pot, and a box of what looked like pasta out in the open.

"NOTHING has ever brought Papyrus and I closer than cooking! So we're gonna be better friends than you can ever IMAGINE! NGAHHHH!"

She suddenly leaped at Frisk and grabbed them by the front of their shirt, dragging them over to the kitchen with her.

"It's time to make some spaghetti! Let's start with the sauce!"

Undyne put the tomatoes in front of them on the counter, with no bowl or anything.

"Envision these as your greatest enemies! Pound them to paste with your fists!"

Frisk, taken aback by all this, reacted on impulse. They punched a tomato as hard as they could with their gloved hand. Since their soul didn't consider this a "fight," and therefore the glove didn't add strength to the blow, all that happened was it rolled a bit.

"YEAH! Our hearts are uniting against these healthy ingredients!" Undyne cried. "Now it's my turn!"

She threw a single punch at the tomatoes, upon which they exploded, splattering her, Frisk, the counter, and part of the wall.

"Let's just scrape that into a bowl later… come on, the pasta's next!"

The pot was already on the stove with hot water inside.

"Homemade noodles are the healthiest, but I just use store-brand! They're the cheapest! Now, SLAM them into this pot with all your might!"

Admittedly, they were rather excited. They'd never cooked spaghetti before, and with Undyne teaching them it was surprisingly fun (even if her methods were a bit questionable). Frisk threw the noodles into the pot after emptying the box and awaited further instructions.

"YEAH! I'M INTO IT!" their teacher cheered. "Go on, mix 'em up!"

They grabbed a wooden spoon and began stirring the pot quickly, spilling some hot water over the sides. Luckily, they didn't get burned by it, but seeing as they were so caught up in the moment it hardly mattered.

"Harder! Show it who's boss!"

Frisk went as fast as they could, jostling the pot around quite a bit.

"All right, now let me try!"

Before they could give her the spoon, Undyne just summoned a magic spear and stabbed into the pot, denting it slightly but stirring the noodles nonetheless.

"And now, the final step! Heat it up, human! Let this stove symbolize your passion and turn your hopes and dreams into burning fire!"

Frisk nodded, finding the heat dial and twisting it.

"Go on, you can do better than THAT! Hotter!"

They cranked it even more at her request, wondering if it was still safe.

"Hotter, damn it! Come on already!"

Undyne's triumphant expression flickered as the heat increased too much.

"Wait, I think that's-"

The stove burst into flames right in front of them. Undyne, at the last second, turned Frisk's soul green again and hid behind the shield it created with them. Once the initial flare had died down, she stepped out and looked around at her now-burning house.

"Man… no wonder Papyrus sucks at cooking!"

"Um…"

"So, what's next? Scrapbooking? Friendship bracelets? I could…"

Undyne hung her head disappointedly and sighed.

"…oh, who am I kidding? I really screwed this up, didn't I? I know, some people just won't ever get along… I can't force you to like me, human. Maybe we're not cut out to be friends…"

"Actually, I-"

"And if we can't be friends… then it means I can destroy you without regret! It's the only way I'll get my pride back!"

She readied a magic spear, beginning another fight.

"I've been defeated… my house is in shambles… and I even failed to be your friend! I have NOTHING to lose, so come on! Hit me with everything you've got!"

This time, she wasn't even wearing armor. Frisk knew very well what could happen if they were to attack her.

"I'M NOT GOING TO FIGHT YOU!" they shouted at the top of their lungs.

Undyne was caught by surprise, clearly not expecting that response. She stared into Frisk's eyes and loosened her grip on the spear.

"…no? That's it? You really can't summon any intent to hurt me?"

"N-no, I can't! I know a lot of people look up to you, and I don't wanna risk taking you away from them. Besides… it was really fun cooking with you!"

The fight ended shortly after they said that, with their soul retreating back into their body. Undyne started to laugh.

"Wow… I was wrong. I don't actually want to hurt you either. At first, I hated your stupid saccharine shtick, but now… you really aren't what I took you for. You're not just some wimpy loser… you're a wimpy loser with a big heart! Come on, let's get the hell outta this burning house!"

She scooped them up into her arms and dashed out the door, setting them down outside as the building went up in flames.

"Whew, that was close. Hey, listen… Frisk, was it?"

"Yup, that's me."

"Right… it seems like you and Asgore are fated to fight when you make it to the capital. And I'm willing to bet he doesn't want to. So… talk to him. I'm sure you can persuade him to let you go home. Who knows, maybe some really mean human will fall down here and we can take their soul instead!"

Frisk laughed softly.

"I guess that makes sense… and I'll do my best with Asgore. I've convinced everyone else so far to stop fighting, so I won't stop now! Hey, um, Undyne… can I ask you something?"

"Sure, what's up?"

"I've been wondering… if Asgore has six human souls already… how did those people die? Did you…"

Her face fell slightly.

"…only one. I don't know how long exactly we've been down here, but I guess humans found a way into the underground within the last century and a half or somethin'. I heard that the first three came before I was in the Royal Guard, the fourth one got past me and made it all the way to Asgore before dying, I won in a battle against the fifth, and the sixth… well, I'm not really sure what happened. A few years ago, the canine unit in Snowdin said they found a human soul in a Soul Containment Capsule, just sitting in the forest with nobody around. It was delivered to the King, but where it came from is beyond us."

"Hm… I feel bad for them. Guess I should be careful not to end up the same way… thanks, Undyne."

"No problem. We should hang out again sometime! Except, uh, somewhere else. I'll stay with Papyrus and Sans in the meantime, so just gimme a call on their phone if you need anything! See ya later, punk!"

With that, she ran off. Frisk took a moment to process all that had happened before starting the walk back to the entrance of Hotland.

 **End of Part Three**


	32. Chapter 31: Alphys

**PART FOUR: HOTLAND TV SPECIAL**

 **Author's Note: Welcome back! Just a brief teaser, from here on things will occasionally be a little different for the sake of keeping the story fresh. This isn't JUST a novelization. Now, we return to Frisk's adventure!**

Chapter 31: Alphys

Frisk's journey to Hotland was, thankfully, shortened when they came across a strange monster riding a boat in a previously-unnoticed river near the flaming remains of Undyne's house. Its appearance was unknown, as it wore a cloak with a hood that completely covered its body. His or her voice wasn't of an easily-discernible gender either, sounding like a melodic but distorted drone. The monster beckoned for them to come over, humming to itself.

"Greetings, human. I am the River Person. I love to ride up and down the river in my boat. Do you need to get to Hotland quickly? I would be happy to take you."

They stared blankly.

"How… how do you know I'm a human? And that I need to go to Hotland?"

"There are no monsters here that look like you do," it replied. "Aren't you trying to reach New Home? The only way to get there is by going through Hotland, you know. Come along, I'll bring you."

Frisk climbed into the wooden boat with River Person, who continued humming in satisfaction. The vessel began moving up the river on its own.

"Off we go, then. Tra la la… have you been keeping your soul safe?"

"Huh? Um… yeah, I have."

"Very good. You can only have one, you know. Humans can't take other human souls, just like monsters can't take other monster souls. There are no refunds on your soul, either."

This hooded monster was a little strange to say the least, but what it was saying did make sense to Frisk.

"Tra la la… I should have worn a few million more pairs of pants today…"

For the most part, anyway.

Their stomach growled. Frisk hadn't eaten anything for a while, and they seemed to digest monster food very quickly. They guessed that due to it being made of soul-healing magic, it wasn't perfectly compatible with humans (and as far as they were aware, they weren't magic).

 _"Great, now I'm weirded out and hungry."_

"Tra la la… humans… monsters… flowers…"

That certainly got their attention.

"What about flowers?"

"Flowers are… not humans. And not monsters. That is all… here we are. Come back soon, human."

The boat pulled up to a bank on their left side. Frisk stepped out and waved goodbye to River Person as it continued traveling with the current. Being greeted by the sudden warmth they'd felt earlier renewed some of their enthusiasm after Waterfall's endless cold.

"All right, now which way should I go…"

Their attention was almost immediately caught by a large, white building with a sign reading "Lab" above the entrance. The only other path to take was blocked by a large collection of fallen rocks, so they had no choice but to investigate the building. Upon approaching its entrance, the door automatically opened for them and revealed a rather dark room. Frisk could barely see anything and had to stumble around clumsily, hoping that nothing would suddenly appear in their path. After a short time of blind walking, the lights suddenly turned on, and they jumped in surprise to see that they weren't alone.

"Oh. My god. Y-you're here already, I haven't showered, and everything's all messy…"

Their immediate impression of this new monster was that she looked like some kind of dinosaur. She stood a few inches taller than Frisk, but her height was marred somewhat by her hunched-over posture (which they assumed was due to her general build). Her entire body was covered in scales colored like marigolds, from her stumpy feet to the ridged spines growing from the back of her head. Two short arms stuck out from what appeared to be a white lab coat, and her hands were clasped together nervously. They could see a tail drooping to the ground behind her, adding to her timid look. From behind a pair of glasses, her eyes focused on the human but didn't look too sure of anything.

"Uh… h-hi there! You're Frisk, right?" she asked in a high-pitched and shaky voice, sweating as she spoke.

"Yes…?"

"I-I-I knew it! I've b-been expecting you since you first… anyway, I'm Doctor Alphys, Asgore's Royal Scientist."

They recognized her name. Papyrus, Sans, and Undyne had all mentioned her previously, but this was the first time Frisk had gotten any indication of what she was like. Looking at her now, "shy" seemed like a good word to use. Her working directly for Asgore put them on edge, though.

"O-oh, don't worry! I'm not one of the 'bad guys…' actually, since you first entered Snowdin forest I've been, um… o-observing your journey with the security cameras?"

Frisk thought back to when they exited the Ruins and noticed a camera in the bushes. In hindsight, the monsters having such a security system made sense, so they didn't question that too much.

"What've you been seeing?"

Alphys blushed and chuckled nervously.

"Oh, almost everything… your fights, your friendships… at first I was gonna try to capture you, but… seeing you travel made me want to help you!"

Her expression became more confident, but something seemed forced about it.

"Using my knowledge, I'm sure I can help you get through Hotland safely!"

Frisk had grown more trusting of monsters throughout their travels, so they decided to believe her. Besides, the skeletons and Undyne had put in a good word for Alphys, and they trusted their new friends.

"Okay, that sounds good to me."

"G-great! Mind if I just see your phone so I can register my number?"

They dug the phone out of their bag and held it out for her. She stared at it with a shocked look on her face.

"Where did you get this thing?! It's ANCIENT! It doesn't even have texting… h-hold on, let me go upgrade this for you. Be right back, feel free to look around if you want!"

Before they could say anything, Alphys ran off somewhere in the lab.

 _"Toriel's phone isn't up-to-date? Just how long has she been in the Ruins by herself? Maybe I should try giving her a call again…"_

Frisk decided to take her up on the offer and examined their surroundings. Like she'd said, it was very messy. Various mechanical parts and notes written in illegible handwriting were strewn all over the place, mostly near what was evidently her main desk. Her computer was currently accessing a puzzle somewhere- they soon realized it was the failed color tile puzzle back in Snowdin-, but tabs for viewing the security cameras were also open. Sitting right next to her desk was an open refrigerator stocked with instant noodles and soda, and next to that was a very large bag of dog food. It was half empty, for some reason.

Against the back wall, several shelves filled with thin books and DVD cases labeled "human history" stood in a row. Recalling Undyne's less-than-accurate idea of what humans were like, they decided to investigate. Upon closer inspection, Frisk could plainly see that these "history" records were little more than comics and cartoons, none of which were even remotely realistic. They shrugged it off as Alphys, like most other monsters, having a skewed idea of life on the surface.

The only other thing that caught their attention was a very large stack of envelopes, sloppily hidden behind one of the bookshelves. They were addressed from several monsters, including Shyren from Waterfall and quite a few members of the Royal Guard's canine unit back in Snowdin. None of the envelopes, some of which dated back several months, had been opened.

Soon enough, the Royal Scientist herself returned with a much more impressive-looking device ready for Frisk.

"Here you go. Now it can do texting, store items, and I even signed you up for the underground's number one social network! Now we're officially friends! Ehehehe…"

Curious about that social network, they examined the app on their new cell phone. "UnderNet" was open to show their friend list, which only contained one user: "ALPHYS." Their username, meanwhile, was "DeterminedSoul."

"Fitting name, I guess."

"Hope you like it! Now you can talk to a bunch of people at once, so your trip will be super convenient! Except…"

Her voice became very quiet.

"There's, um, one tiny problem? S-see, a long time ago I made a robot called Mettaton. He was supposed to be for entertainment, like a robotic TV star, but… um… r-recently I decided to upgrade him with some stuff… specifically… anti-human combat mechanisms?"

They frowned. "Can't you control him though?"

"W-well, when I saw you coming I decided to remove the features, but something went wrong. And now, he's a… an unstoppable killing machine with a thirst for blood! B-but it's okay, we shouldn't run into…"

Alphys was cut off by a loud metallic bang coming from somewhere nearby. Then another. And another. The sound was getting close.

"Oh no…" she whispered.

All of a sudden, the laboratory's lights went out again. There was a rumble, then a crash. Something had just burst through the wall.


	33. Chapter 32: First Taste of Stardom

Chapter 32: First Taste of Stardom

Frisk heard another voice over the sound of Alphys' nervous whimpering. It was distinctly male (and very flamboyant), but had an odd mechanical warbling in its tone, like the speaker was talking through a radio.

 **"Ohhh yes! Welcome, beauties, to today's quiz!"**

A spotlight activated within the lab, illuminating whoever it was. Their soul appeared, identifying him as Alphys' very own robot, Mettaton. Most of his body was shaped like a rectangle, with a pair of thin arms extending from the sides that ended in rather humanoid-looking hands. Instead of legs, he rolled back and forth in place on a mounted wheel protruding from his body. Due to his shape, he didn't have a head or face, but rather a display of several miniature screens that blinked red and orange (currently flashing in an "M" display) on the upper half of his main section. Various other knobs and switches covered his lower half. Despite not having any visible mouth, Mettaton clutched a microphone in his right hand.

 **"I can already tell it's gonna be a great show! Let's give a big hand for our lovely contestant here."**

Frisk noticed that he was taking to no less than five cameras facing them, and wondered how they hadn't seen those before he showed up. The spotlight was mounted there too, shining down on the robot.

"What's going on?" they asked aloud, to no avail. Alphys seemed too worried to form an answer for them.

 **"Never participated in this quiz before, gorgeous? The rules are simple! Just answer the questions right… OR YOU DIE!"**

Their soul helpfully reminded them that Mettaton was made of metal stronger than any of their weapons could manage, so they could only go along with his murderous quiz. The screen on the front of his face flashed a question and several choices for them.

 **"Let's start with an easy one: What's your prize for answering correctly?"**

Frisk was presented with (A) Money, (B) Mercy, (C) New Car, and (D) More Questions. They were tempted to choose the second one, but out of the corner of their eye they saw Alphys- who'd thankfully snapped out of her trance- forming the letter "D" with her fingers.

"Uh… choice D."

 **"CORRECT!"** Mettaton exclaimed. **"Sounds like you get it!"**

Alphys gave them a brief thumbs-up to show that she'd continue helping.

 **"Here's your terrific prize, darling: What is the King's full name?"**

They didn't need help with that one, and answered "Asgore Dreemurr" without hesitation. Once again, Mettaton appeared satisfied with their choice.

 **"Let's talk about me now! What are robots made of?"**

Frisk looked over the choices, then saw Alphys signaling "B" for them to choose "Metal and Magic." They did so, with successful results.

 **"Too easy for you, huh? Well, how about this?"**

Mettaton showed them a very long math problem that was far beyond their knowledge, but they received help once again and answered correctly. However timid Alphys seemed, her intellect was definitely nothing to sneeze at.

 **"Time for a memory game, human! What monster is this?"**

His screen displayed the upper-right half of a white frog's head. They didn't consult with the Royal Scientist and blurted out "Froggit" immediately, recognizing it from the Ruins. That turned out to be a mistake.

 **"WROOOONG!"** Mettaton taunted as an electric beam shot from his fingertips, cutting their soul's HP to 10/20 immediately. The picture on his screen zoomed out to reveal that it was, in fact, a picture of him wearing a large shirt with a frog face printed on it.

 **"Let's see if that was just a fluke. Here's your next question: Would you smooch a ghost?"**

Frisk opened their mouth to protest, but then saw that all four of the choices he provided read "Heck Yeah." Alphys looked just as puzzled and couldn't offer any advice, so they chose one at random.

 **"Great answer, darling. I love it! Moving on: In the dating simulation video game, 'Mew Mew Kissy Cutie,' what is Mew Mew's favorite food?"**

They didn't even need to look to Alphys for help, as she excitedly began rattling off a very long-winded description of the game's plot and characters, and how the overall theme of friendship was strongly portrayed with "Mew Mew" treating her friends to snail-flavored ice cream without realizing that only she liked it, and how the rest of the day's events played out afterwards. Frisk mentally tuned out until the scientist noticed her own rambling and quickly died down, blushing heavily.

 **"Alphys, Alphys, Alphys. Are you helping our contestant? Well, in that case I'll give you a question you're bound to know the answer to!"**

Mettaton's next question made both her and the human flinch.

 **"Who does Doctor Alphys have a crush on? Is it (A) Undyne, (B) Asgore, (C) you, or (D) do you not know?"**

They were torn on their options. While getting zapped again for answering incorrectly wasn't what they had in mind, Frisk didn't want to humiliate Alphys by possibly choosing the right answer. Eventually, they decided to grit their teeth and bear whatever would come their way.

"I… I don't know."

An honest response, though they could have sworn they saw her nervously eyeing the choice for Undyne. Mettaton didn't seem to mind.

 **"Hm… I suspect you wouldn't know yet, you only just met Alphys. But I'm sure that by spending even a small amount of time with her the real answer will become obvious. As for right now, with her helping you the show has no dramatic tension! But I assure you, this was just the pilot episode! NEXT TIME: more drama, more romance, more bloodshed! Goodbye for now, dear viewers! I'll be waiting for you to arrive, human."**

With that, their damaged soul disappeared as Mettaton rolled away out the door, singing loudly to himself. The cameras facing them seemed to shut down, and the laboratory's lights turned back on.

"W-well then…" Alphys stammered. "Are you okay? You can take some food from the fridge for the road. I think you're gonna need it if you run into him again. I'll be guiding you from here over the phone… uh, I h-have to use the bathroom. Good luck, I'll see how you're doing in a bit!"

She ran off through a door to the side, which shut behind her. Frisk took her up on the offer, helping themselves to a can of soda and a package of noodles. Rather than putting them in their bag, they decided to test the new phone's item storage system. It accessed some kind of dimensional box which, to their surprise, even showed the items they'd been placing in wooden chests so far. Now they could handle their inventory on the go, which raised their spirits quite a bit. A few button pushes later, the soda and noodles had simply vanished from sight, stored in one of the dimensional boxes for future use.

Aside from Mettaton being the latest threat, things were looking up for Frisk.


	34. Chapter 33: Into Hotland

Chapter 33: Into Hotland

The human exited the laboratory- updating their Save Point for good measure- through another door on the far side of it. This path was apparently much longer than the one blocked by fallen rocks, but it would have to do. It wasn't all bad, anyway. Frisk's new phone allowed them to experience monster social networking (something they were very surprised even existed) for the first time. During Mettaton's quiz, they'd received friend requests from users "CoolSkeleton95," "StrongFishCaptain," and "napstablook22." Frisk happily accepted all three (even though the third one seemed intent on rejecting itself, they managed to accept in the end), having a fairly good idea of who they were.

As they walked, they decided to give Toriel and Papyrus a call. Once again, the former didn't respond, but the latter call was answered within two rings.

"GREETINGS, HUMAN! THIS IS THE GREAT-"

"Hey, punk! What's up?!" Undyne's voice blared through the speakers. Based on the sound of a mild scuffle, she'd taken Papyrus' phone from him.

"We just saw ya taking that quiz on TV! Way to go there, you showed him who's boss! And Alphys was there too! Whaddya think of her?"

"I think she's nice," they replied. "She gave me this cool phone, and signed me up for UnderNet. You guys just sent me friend requests, didn't you?"

"OF COURSE WE DID, 'DETERMINEDSOUL'!"

"What the- hey, give me that!"

"I'LL JUST PUT IT ON SPEAKER… AS I WAS SAYING, WE ARE NOW YOUR FRIENDS ONLINE AND OFFLINE! THERE'S NO ESCAPING OUR KIND, VICE-LIKE GRASP!"

Frisk cracked a smile.

"Does Sans have an account too?"

"LET ME CHECK… BROTHER! DO YOU HAVE UNDERNET? THE HUMAN JUST GOT ONLINE! …I SEE… WHAT DO YOU MEAN, 'TAKES TOO LONG TO SIGN UP?!' UGH… WELL, DON'T STAY OUT TOO LATE. YOU HAVE OTHER JOBS TO SLACK OFF AT."

"Where's he going?"

"OUT TO SNOWDIN FOREST," Papyrus explained. "HE SPENDS A LOT OF TIME OUT THERE… AND IF I KNOW SANS, HE DEFINITELY ISN'T LOOKING FOR HUMANS LIKE HE'S SUPPOSED TO."

"Maybe he's tryin' to open that mysterious door near his station…"

"Oh, you mean the door to the Ruins?" Frisk asked, to which their friends responded with sudden eagerness.

"You came to Snowdin through there, didn't ya?! What was it like in there? Nobody's ever been inside since that door sealed itself!"

They were about to mention Toriel to them, but stopped themselves from speaking too rashly. Inwardly, Frisk wondered if she would prefer not having anyone know about her.

"It's, um… pretty boring in there. Nothing to be found except some spiders having a bake sale, and a few monsters still living in that old city…"

"DO YOU MEAN HOME?"

"…'Home?'"

"Yeah, Home." Undyne explained. "According to history, when monsters first came to the underground hundreds of years ago they settled in that giant cave and made a city. Asgore's pretty lousy with names, so he just decided to call it Home. Once we left that place and expanded outwards, a new capital city was built on the opposite end of the caverns. It's called…"

"New Home," Frisk finished for her, giggling. They noticed that they were approaching a system of conveyer belts extending over a large chasm, at the bottom of which was a pit of lava. "I should go for a bit, don't wanna lose my footing on these belts."

"Conveyer belts in the floor? I hate those almost as much as I hate puzzles! But I did have this cool idea to combine them…"

"NOOO! YOUR PUZZLE IDEAS ARE THE WORST!"

Undyne hung up after that, presumably to share her idea with Papyrus. Frisk, meanwhile, carefully navigated their way across the chasm. Keeping their balance on the moving belts was even trickier than it first seemed, but they managed to get through safely. UnderNet was notifying their phone quite a bit, so once they reached solid ground again they checked the app. Alphys had updated her public status a few times.

 _ALPHYS: "time to help the human!"_

 _ALPHYS: "gonna call them in a minute! =^.^="_

 _ALPHYS: "I HATE USING THE PHONE I DONT WANT TO DO THIS LMAO"_

Having gotten past the conveyer belts with no sign that Alphys was going to call them any time soon, they looked ahead to the next obstacle: yet another precarious drop, this time without belts. Instead, steam vents in the ground could launch them across the gaps with powerful blasts of exhaust. Nervous about whether or not that would actually work, they stepped over one with their eyes squeezed shut. After a short flight, Frisk found themselves safely on a different ledge.

"Huh, guess that worked well enough. What's this?"

A rusty-looking frying pan sat abandoned on the ground beside them. Their soul explained that it was not only a very powerful weapon- at this point they didn't even question what exactly counted any more- but also was capable of increasing the healing power of monster food items. Frisk picked it up, finding it surprisingly light for its size, and held it in their gloved hand before stepping onto another steam vent to continue.

The first real form of resistance presented itself soon after: a small monster that resembled a tiny volcano with a face and four feet approached and decided to begin blasting streams of lava at Frisk. According to their soul, this creature- named Vulkin- believed that its lava had healing capabilities and didn't mean any harm. Frisk's new tool proved to be useful in yet another way- the frying pan served as an excellent option for defense and harmlessly blocked the lava. They eventually managed to convince Vulkin that they didn't need healing, and it let them go.

Shortly after the brief skirmish ended, their phone rang. They answered only to find that whoever had called hung up immediately. A notification from UnderNet revealed the caller's identity.

 _ALPHYS: "omg i just had my claw over the last digit for five minutes. guess i'd better try again."_

Within a few moments, Frisk received a second call. This time, thankfully, Alphys didn't hang up.

"H-hi, Frisk! Where are you right now?"

"I just got through some conveyer belts and steam vents. Not sure how else to describe it."

They heard what sounded like rustling papers on the other end of the call.

"If my notes are accurate, you should be coming up to a system of lasers. They work kinda like magic attacks… you can't move through blue ones, and- oh, you haven't seen orange attacks yet, have you? J-just keep moving through those, and you'll be fine… uh, gotta go!"

She hung up abruptly, and soon enough UnderNet was receiving notifications.

 _ALPHYS: "OMG I DID IT! claws haven't shook like that since undyne called me asking about the weather. wait… WE DONT HAVE WEATHER WHY DID SHE CALL ME"_

 _CoolSkeleton95: "WHY DID YOU ASK THAT, UNDYNE?"_

 _StrongFishCaptain: "Who cares if there's no weather down here? Isn't it natural to love meteorology?"_

 _CoolSkeleton95: "I DIDN'T THINK YOU'D BE INTERESTED IN THAT. I THOUGHT IT WAS JUST AN EXCUSE TO TALK TO HER."_

 _StrongFishCaptain: "Hey, guess what Papyrus? There IS weather here after all! And I'm predicting an incoming storm of_ _ **SHUT UP**_ _"_

Putting away the phone for the time being, Frisk soon came across the laser grid Alphys had been talking about. The beams were arranged in such a way that ducking under or going between them was impossible, so they hesitantly approached the first one, which was orange. They recalled what she'd said about it and willed themselves to walk straight through. Sure enough, Frisk passed harmlessly by the orange laser. Immediately after that was a blue one, mounted on a track and sliding back and forth.

"Gotta time this carefully…"

They followed the blue laser for a short distance, then stopped moving once it turned around. It passed right through their body, causing no harm other than a strange tingling feeling. Frisk made it past the next few blue and orange lasers with the same strategy, activating a switch at the end of the corridor to shut them all off for good measure. Grinning slightly, they couldn't help but feel like the rest of the underground would be a breeze thanks to Alphys helping them. Out of curiosity, they returned to UnderNet to see if Papyrus and Undyne could provide assistance as well.

 _DeterminedSoul: "_ _ **CoolSkeleton95**_ _,_ _ **StrongFishCaptain**_ _. Think you can help me go through Hotland too?"_

 _CoolSkeleton95: "NEITHER OF US KNOW MUCH OF ANYTHING ABOUT IT."_

 _StrongFishCaptain: "So we'll just have to COMBINE OUR POWER!"_

 _CoolSkeleton95: "ZERO PLUS ZERO IS STILL ZERO."_

 _StrongFishCaptain: "Yeah, but it's a BIG zero!"_

Well, that idea was a bust. At least they were laughing, though.


	35. Chapter 34: Cooking With a Killer Robot

Chapter 34: Cooking With a Killer Robot

As Frisk continued through Hotland (with puzzle assistance from Alphys), they began to notice various clustered groups of monsters standing around and talking excitedly. Some careful eavesdropping informed the human of what was so interesting- it was actually quite a few things.

The puzzles throughout the area had apparently been deactivated for a long time roughly until Frisk's arrival at the laboratory. For some unexplained reason, they'd started functioning again, and a great number of monsters found their paths to work and school blocked by laser grids and sealed doors- not that anyone seemed too upset about it. When Frisk consulted with Undyne and Papyrus over the phone, the former responded, "Kids are skipping school? I can't blame 'em… school SUCKS! We need to find out how to make it more interesting. Hm… what if I came to school? Wouldn't that be great? I could beat up ALL the teachers!"

Those who weren't talking about school or work were instead rambling about Mettaton's latest show. There were about thirty monsters in total sharing their favorite moments from it with each other. Some even recognized Frisk and excitedly pointed them out, though nobody seemed willing to approach them. The human did hear whispers of people not being able to wait for the next episode, however.

Frisk's attention was particularly caught by a pair of monsters standing separate from the other groups. Upon noticing the human, they beckoned for them to come closer. One was a short, smooth-skinned humanoid creature with bulging eyes and a seemingly emotionless stare, the other could only be described as a very large, angular face with a twisted smile sprouting from the ground. Both monsters were the same shade of dull gray, like that Monster Kid lookalike from the dump.

"Hey, you're the kid Doctor Alphys helped on that quiz, aren't you?" the first one asked.

Frisk nodded, slightly uneasy due to the way the two monsters stared straight at them, unblinking.

The second chuckled in a hollow, wispy voice. "She's pretty bright, huh? Not quite meeting the expectations for a successor, but still… she does have a big act to follow."

"Now now, we all know how long it took Asgore to find a new one," the first monster replied. "Who could meet those expectations?"

"What are you talking about?" Frisk commented. The two grinned widely at them in unison, to their discomfort.

The smooth-skinned monster spoke again. "You've never heard of Doctor W.D. Gaster? Well… he was the previous Royal Scientist. A genius of irreplaceable brilliance, plain and simple! He's the one behind the creation of the Core, our biggest power source."

"Where is he now?"

"Nobody knows. About 20 years ago, he just vanished without warning. No matter how hard everyone looked, he was never found. Alphys was his assistant back then… she seemed pretty broken up about it. Some people say he might've fallen into his creation and gotten smeared across time and space. Could be what happened."

"Hey," the face-looking monster interrupted. "Why are you gossiping with the human? They've got better things to do… besides, we shouldn't be talking about Doctor Gaster… it's pretty rude to talk about someone who's listening."

"Right you are. Come on, let's go."

The two were suddenly gone in a flash. Frisk had no idea who the monsters were or where they'd went, or why their body suddenly felt cold. Two questions were running through their mind: who was W.D. Gaster, and what had happened to him? They wondered if Alphys would be able to give more details. Upon reaching for their phone to call her, though, a call from a different person came in. Not recognizing the number, Frisk hesitantly answered.

"Hello?"

"Yo, Frisk! What's up?"

Their unease disappeared almost immediately at the sound of their friend's voice.

"Oh, hey Kid! I'm going through Hotland right now."

"I heard about the puzzles turning back on there! You're okay, aren't you?"

"Sure am. Doctor Alphys is helping me with them. They're not that hard anyway, though…"

They heard him laughing.

"Yo, I knew you'd be fine! Did Undyne stop chasing you?"

"Yes. Actually, we're friends now."

"WHAT?! That's awesome!"

"Yep, she's pretty cool once you get to know her. Hey Kid, do you have UnderNet? We should friend each other on it! I'm DeterminedSoul."

Kid seemed to groan loudly.

"All my other friends say I should get an account too… I know, I'll make one and friend you later. See you in a little bit, yeah?"

"Got it."

They hung up, deciding that whatever questions they had about Gaster could wait until later. Frisk moved across a few more steam vents and entered some kind of small building. Two doors shut behind them, leaving the human in a pitch-black room. They gave Alphys a call for advice.

"You can't see? D-don't worry, I'll hack into the light system to brighten it up!"

A few seconds later, the room was illuminated to reveal a very strange sight. Frisk was standing in some kind of recording studio set up to look like an average kitchen, with a sink, refrigerator, microwave, and other appliances. Mettaton was in the middle of the room, wearing an apron and a chef hat on his rectangular body

 **"Hello there, darling!"**

"Oh no…" Alphys whispered.

 **"Ohhh yes! Welcome, beauties and gentlebeauties, to the underground's premier cooking show: Cooking With a Killer Robot!"**

To Frisk's dismay, the exits were blocked off by what looked like high-voltage laser gates.

"Can't you turn these off, Alphys?" they asked into the phone.

"N-no! Mettaton's controlling them personally! I have to hang up while I think of a solution, be careful!"

 **"Pre-heat your ovens, because today we've got a very special recipe for you. We're going to be making… a cake!"**

The robot dramatically swung his arm around to point at Frisk, and the cameras in the room focused on them.

 **"My lovely assistant here will be gathering the ingredients for us, but before that let's have a look at some of these products, now on sale near YOU!"**

With the attention no longer on them, Frisk stood back and tried to stay calm as Mettaton proudly advertised his kitchen appliances.

 **"MTT-brand ovens can reach temperatures up to nine thousand degrees! Roasting! Toasting! Burning! Charring! You're excited, aren't you darling? ™ "**

He sounded delighted to be speaking so highly of the devices. Frisk couldn't tell if he was highly devoted to his job as a TV star or just insane.

 **"Next we have the MTT-brand microwave, origin of the MTT challenge! Put your food in for five minutes on high heat, and if you can still recognize it afterwards then we'll double your money back!"**

Okay, maybe somewhere in between the two.

 **"And finally, the MTT-brand refrigerator! Perfect for storing valuables in case of robberies, because who'd want to steal from a refrigerator?! Also great as a fridge, if that's really so important to you. Now then, human, would you kindly get the ingredients? We need milk, sugar, and eggs."**

Frisk decided to just go along with him for the time being, as Mettaton seemed more interested in the show than attacking them. They saw the ingredients sitting on the back counter.

"Why aren't the milk and eggs in the fridge?"

 **"Don't be ridiculous! They'd get cold in there! Hurry up, now, the audience is waiting for us!"**

Shrugging their shoulders, they brought the three ingredients over to the counter next to Mettaton and set them down.

 **"Marvelous job, beautiful! Now we have everything we need: eggs, sugar, milk… oh my! Wait a magnificent moment, how could I have forgotten? We're still missing the special ingredient…"**

To Frisk's horror, he pulled a large chainsaw out of a cabinet and began revving it up.

 **"A human soul!"**

Mettaton slowly rolled toward them, but was interrupted a ringing sound. It was apparently a phone built into his body.

 **"Hello…? I'm kind of in the middle of something here."**

From one of the speakers on him, they could hear Alphys' voice.

"W-wait a second! Couldn't you make a, um, substitution in the recipe?"

 **"…a substitution? You mean, use a different, non-human ingredient? Why would I want to do that?"**

"Uh… what if someone's… v-vegan?"

 **"Vegan,"** he repeated in a flat tone, like he was asking her if she was serious. Her voice grew more nervous.

"W-well, I mean-"

 **"THAT'S A BRILLIANT IDEA, ALPHYS! And I just so happen to have an ingredient right here that'll do the job!"**

Mettaton put the chainsaw away and pointed at a small desk just outside the recording studio. A red can of some kind sat on it, presumably the aforementioned substitution. The laser grid on that side moved back to allow access to the desk, but not far enough to let Frisk escape.

 **"MTT-brand Always Convenient Human Soul Flavor Substitute! Well, darling, why don't you go get it for us?"**

Commanding themselves not to think about what their soul could possibly taste like to monsters, as well as what ingredients were in a "flavor substitute" for it, Frisk wandered over to the desk and reached out to grab the can. Just as they were getting close, the desk suddenly rose out of the ground on a pillar of similar desks, stretching quite high up into the air.

 **"By the way,"** Mettaton casually remarked as they stared in shock, **"our show runs on a strict schedule. If you can't get the can in the next minute, we'll just have to go back to the original plan! So… better start climbing, beautiful!"**

The single wheel he rolled on retracted into his body, and in its place a jet booster emerged. He took off flying up toward the top of the newly-formed tower, while Frisk received a call from Alphys.

"I see what's happening on the TV!" she cried. "There's not enough time for you to climb up there, so… I-I have an idea. When I was upgrading your phone, I added a few features. There should be an app called 'JETPACK.' Open it!"

They looked through the phone to find what she was talking about, and did as told. Within seconds of activating the app, the phone transformed into a small rocket pack that strapped itself to Frisk's back.

"All you have to do is steer, it works on its own! Now hurry up!"

Taking off, they made their way up. As the human flew, Mettaton tried to hinder their progress with the gathered ingredients. He threw eggs, dumped large amounts of sugar, and spilled milk in their direction, but Frisk carefully weaved their way around the obstacles and made it to the top of the tower. They triumphantly grabbed the can of flavor substitute and showed it to Mettaton with an admittedly smug grin.

 **"Oh my, it seems you've bested me. Only because of the brilliant Doctor Alphys, though! By the way… don't worry about the substitution! Haven't you ever seen a cooking show before? I already baked the cake ahead of time. Well, toodles!"**

The robot flew away deeper into the caverns, leaving Frisk to land on their own. Unfortunately, the jetpack seemed to have run out of fuel, so using it again was impossible. It turned back into a phone and resumed the call with Alphys.

"W-wow… we did it! We really did it! G-great work, team! Go on, Frisk, keep moving forward!"

She sounded much more confident, possibly due to the success of her device. It made them happy to listen to.

[Save File Updated]


	36. Chapter 35: Catching Up With Friends

Chapter 35: Catching Up With Friends

Leaving the recording studio behind, Frisk wound up on a straightforward path with nothing in their way for a while. They were standing on a rocky structure high above the magma pits that Hotland was known for, but the surface was stable enough to make falling virtually a non-issue. Their attention was quickly drawn to a massive structure looming in the distance. Hundreds of pipes and vents could be seen protruding from it, and the whole thing looked very well illuminated.

"Alphys," Frisk said into their phone, "can you see me with the camera system right now? What's that building over there?"

"Oh, that? It's the Core, the primary source of power for the underground. It generates magical electricity by harnessing geothermal energy from tremors in… a-anyway, that's where you need to go. There's an elevator in there that leads really close to Asgore's castle, so you don't have to take the long way around Hotland. From there… you can go home to the surface."

"Good to know there's a shortcut. Will I run into Mettaton again?"

"H-hard to say… he's probably gonna try to set up another show along the way, so we'll just have to be careful."

Aside from that robot, they found Hotland to be fairly comfortable now that they had so many friends supporting them. Frisk would have considered visiting Sans, Papyrus, Undyne, and Kid if they weren't so focused on getting out. A question they'd briefly forgotten came to mind.

"Hey, Alphys… what can you tell me about the scientist before you? I heard some people mention him earlier."

It sounded like she squawked in surprise. Evidently, she didn't expect them to ask about him.

"D-Doctor Gaster? He's been gone for about 20 years now… I was his assistant from a young age, he just saw potential in me I guess."

"What happened to him?"

Her breathing seemed to even out before she responded.

"I'm… I'm not sure. He was just… gone one day. No clues of where he went, or what happened to him. Where'd you hear his name?"

They frowned, thinking about it.

"From two monsters waiting near one of the puzzles I solved. One of them told me that Gaster was smeared across time and space or something."

She sounded a bit worried.

"I-I guess it's possible? I've been trying to research it ever since he disappeared… I should go, see you later!"

Alphys hung up without warning, leaving Frisk very confused. They followed the path to an elevator that brought them to an "upper" floor of Hotland. The cavern, evidently, was even larger in that area if there were multiple layers through which the elevator could travel. Upon stepping out into the next corridor, they were greeted with a familiar face.

"Sans!"

"heya, kid."

He was sitting behind a desk, apparently attending to a _fourth_ job. This time, what exactly that was seemed obvious: several hot dogs were cooking on a grill behind him. Sans had his usual wide grin and turned to fully face them after giving a hot dog to a Vulkin, which happily scampered off with it.

"you look tired, pal. wanna rest for a little while here? i'll give ya a hot dog if ya want."

He gestured to a chair near the desk. Frisk's legs were, admittedly, killing them after so much walking through the underground, so they gratefully obliged and flopped into it.

"oh, can ya do me a favor and call papyrus to let him know i'm here?"

"Sure thing…"

Needless to say, his brother and Undyne had no idea where he was when Frisk called.

"WHAT? SANS IS ACTUALLY AT HIS STATION?"

"He's selling hot dogs?! I thought he only had three jobs!"

"NO, IT'S DEFINITELY FOUR AT LEAST…"

"Who the hell keeps hiring this guy?!"

After they hung up, Sans came over to them with a freshly-cooked hot dog.

"here's your 'dog. apostrophe-dog. that'll be 30G."

Frisk had expected not to get it for free, so they paid without complaint. The skeleton took the money with a wink before turning to leave.

"i'm takin' a break. see you later, kid."

He casually strolled away, slurping out of a ketchup bottle as he went. Seeing as there was nobody around to interrupt them, Frisk chose to stay there for a break of their own. They used their phone's item storage system to take more food out of their inventory, until they had a small feast to themselves: the hot dog, the can of soda from Alphys, the other Unicicle (which they'd eaten before killing Undyne, but was back after they reset to try the fight again), and the Cinnamon Bunny from Snowdin.

Frisk wasn't too concerned about keeping items to restore their soul's HP, as they still had Toriel's slice of pie, the instant noodles, and the spider donut from the Ruins in their inventory. Besides, they were too hungry at the moment to care. Happily digging in, starting with the hot dog, they took out their phone to check UnderNet. Another friend request had come in, from "M0NST3Rkid," as well as several messages from a different user.

 _MTT-Official: "Hello there, darling! I just wanted to thank you for the HUGE success that was our baking show! Too bad you managed to escape… but don't fret, we'll meet again soon~."_

They deleted the message without a second thought.

"I should talk to Kid again…"

Frisk accepted his friend request, upon which they received an invitation to join a chat group called "Cool Kids of Snowdin." Curious, they agreed to it. Quite a few users were in the group.

 _DeterminedSoul: "Um, hi everyone."_

 _M0NST3Rkid: "Yo, it's Frisk! See guys, I told you we were friends!"_

 _MasterComedianSnowdrake: "_ _ **snow**_ _kidding."_

 _icecap: "_ _ **DeterminedSoul**_ _yeah, Kid wouldn't shut up about you."_

 _M0NST3Rkid: "That's not true and you know it."_

 _GlydeTheGreatest: "why dont I ever get that much attention"_

 _icecap: "probably because you live alone in the woods?"_

 _MasterComedianSnowdrake: "we ALL live in the woods except for kid"_

 _DeterminedSoul: "Don't you guys get cold out there?"_

 _M0NST3Rkid: "Why'd you run away in the first place?"_

Frisk stifled a gasp. Had those monsters really run away from home? They wondered if it was for the same reasons they had... and hoped that wasn't the case.

 _ChillDrake-the-Rebel: "because it RULES! nobody can tell us what to do out here"_

 _MasterComedianSnowdrake: "you said it"_

 _ChillDrake-the-Rebel: "we survive on our own out here, scavenging for these sweet packages of goods we find every now and then. plenty of food to keep us going strong!"_

 _M0NST3Rkid: "I think those packages are just boxed lunches that your parents leave in the forest for you to find."_

 _ChillDrake-the-Rebel: "YOU CANT PROVE IT"_

Well… at least the monsters seemed happy with their situation. Frisk was relieved to hear that.

 _icecap: "so frisk, kid says you're on a journey through the underground."_

 _DeterminedSoul: "Yeah, I'm all the way in Hotland."_

 _GlydeTheGreatest: "I think you mean you're ONLY in Hotland! If it were me I'd be outta here already!"_

 _M0NST3Rkid: "If it were you then I doubt you'd have made friends with Undyne. So no, you wouldn't be out."_

 _icecap: "you're a friend of Undyne?! You have to introduce us next time you're in Snowdin!"_

 _M0NST3Rkid: "now that you're on TV, everyone wants you to come visit us."_

Frisk suddenly felt uncomfortable. While Kid may have known (though they weren't completely sure), the others weren't aware that they had no intention of going back to Snowdin. They closed UnderNet and put their phone away, returning to their food with a slightly heavy heart.

"I do want to escape… I _do_ want to escape…"

Needing something to distract themselves with, Frisk dug out the torn notebook they'd bought from Gerson back in Waterfall and examined it. Many of the pages were missing, and it clearly had been around for years. It was evidently some kind of journal, belonging to someone with very neat and curvy handwriting. She was apparently named Abigail.

It took Frisk a moment to notice, but upon closely reading the notebook they realized that she was one of the humans to enter the underground before them. The clusters of pages and words that hadn't worn away told her story.


	37. Chapter 36: Perseverant Soul

Chapter 36: Perseverant Soul

 **Author's Note: And so we reach the "adaptation" part of this adaptation. I had a lot of fun writing Abigail's journal!**

 _"I have arrived at the base of Mount Ebott after twenty-five days and nights of travel from across the kingdom. At long last, I may unravel the mysteries surrounding this place. With the knowledge I obtain, all of mankind will read my book and know of the woman who braved this 'cursed' place. My provisions are well-stocked, and my courage is high. What may stop me now?"_

 _"It's been nearly twelve hours of climbing, and this mountain has so far proved an insignificant challenge. Has no one else thought to investigate…"_

 _"Tonight, an unusual stillness hangs in the air. Mount Ebott provides an excellent view of the night sky, where… to the… echoes… trees whispering in the sudden draft…"_

 _"I must keep moving. The top is in sight."_

Quite a few pages were missing.

 _"…may as well take the time to describe my 'soul,' as it refers to itself. I find it hard to believe that this small, purple heart floating in front of me holds my entire sense of self. It moves with me, and it can identify certain things if I ask it to. This place has a certain magic to it, and I believe my soul's emergence may be a result of exposure to the environment. I wonder if the color purple has any significance for a soul… at any rate, it's my favorite color."_

 _"The monsters here in the Ruins pose little threat to me. Despite their large sizes they die with practically no effort on my part. They turn to dust upon death… and my soul grows stronger. My LOVE has increased from one to five ever since I fell into this place. Curious…"_

 _"I met a large, goatlike creature. She informed me that the monsters here are actually quite harmless. Now I feel guilty for having killed many of them."_

 _"Toriel is a good friend. She is much more knowledgeable than she first seemed, and we've learned quite a lot from each other. I know not why she lives here alone, but she seems too uncomfortable to explain. Regardless, I have a deep respect for her. She reminds me of my mother…"_

 _"According to Toriel, I am the third human to have fallen into Mount Ebott in forty years. The fates of the prior two are unknown to her, but she assumes the worst."_

 _"…symbol on her dress and seen throughout the Ruins. It is a set of three triangles with a winged circle above them. She calls it… -blem of the Monster Kingdom."_

 _"Though it greatly pains me, I must leave the Ruins to seek a way back to the surface. Toriel fretted for my safety, but I assured her that I would take care of myself. Fortunately, we were able to part ways with little drama."_

 _"…forest is a truly mystical place. It's quiet and serene, but admittedly somewhat unsettling at times. I have yet to encounter any monsters here."_

A few pages were either missing or too smudged to read.

 _"Soldiers from this kingdom's 'Royal Guard' are patrolling Snowdin Town… interest of staying unnoticed, I must bypass the town altogether."_

 _"Yesterday I unfortunately lost my reading glasses..."_

 _"This area is known as Waterfall. Briefly studying the terrain has led me to the conclusion that, even without magic, the soil here is impressively fertile. As much as I would like to stay here and document all that I can find, I must not stop for too long… the Royal Guard's captain, Gerson, is searching for me."_

 _"…found Napstablook, that ghost from the Ruins. He lives here in Waterfall with his three cousins, two of which possess training dummies. One is very soft-spoken and tends to be by herself more often than not, the other is constantly loud and aggressive. His third cousin is named… flair for fashion… calls him 'Blooky.' None of the ghosts seem particularly interested in attacking me, not even 'Mad Dummy.'"_

 _"…escaped Gerson once and for all. It seems he cannot stand the heat of the next underground location… he also seems like quite an elderly monster."_

 _"I much prefer the environment of Waterfall to Hotland… the heat is ungodly here, as to be expected, but it also seems much harder to breathe."_

 _"…came across a strange laboratory. Inside, I met Doctor W.D. Gaster, apparently the Royal Scientist. He made no attempts to capture me, being strictly opposed to violence. In fact, he was quite pleased to meet me. Like most other monsters, he's never encountered a human before. Gaster possesses an incredible degree of intelligence as well as great scientific recognition in the kingdom, but seems most proud of his son… -erefore the birth was not natural; a logical explanation… Doctor Gaster has no wife, and is himself a…"_

 _"…Core is still under construction, so I had to find a different way to the capital city. This path was fraught with danger… but no matter the trials, I will persevere in my escape!"_

 _"The exit to Hotland was blocked by a pair of armored Royal Guards. I managed to outwit them by subtly convincing the two to admit their feelings for one another. Said feelings were obvious from the moment I engaged them, and they were so distracted in their confessions that slipped past unnoticed. Those two looked happy with each other… I'm glad I didn't harm them."_

 _"…capital city of 'New Home' is eerily quiet… took the opportunity to read from several monster history books. I learned about the war, and why it was waged… -erestingly, what happened while they were trapped underground… the King's son, Asriel… close friend of a… 'Chara,' her name was… fallen down many years ago. After a sudden illness befell… crossed the Barrier."_

Only one page after that was written on, the others having all been lost to time.

 _"…about to confront the King. When next I write in this, I will be free on the surface! My famous story awaits!"_


	38. Chapter 37: MTT News Network

Chapter 37: MTT News Network

Before Frisk continued walking, they took a moment to collect their thoughts on what they'd read. Abigail's journal seemed to date back over a century, given that she was evidently the third soul to be obtained by Asgore and that Undyne had explained how six humans had fallen into the underground in the last 150 years. She too had met Toriel (who was apparently much older than Frisk had realized), but made no mention of Flowey in the readable parts of the journal, leading them to assume that he was born (grown?) sometime after her fall. Similarly, Undyne and Alphys were not present; instead Gerson was still head of the Royal Guard and W.D. Gaster was still Royal Scientist. The skeleton brothers also were never referenced.

Two names were mostly unfamiliar to Frisk: Asriel, King Asgore's son, and 'Chara.' They recalled hearing that name on the two occasions that they'd died, and were finally closer to figuring out who exactly she was. Moreover, something clicked in their mind at last: the Delta Rune, the symbol they'd seen in Gerson's shop and on the armor of the canine Royal Guards, was the same symbol as what they'd seen on Toriel's dress back in the Ruins. They wondered why she would be wearing it, though.

The line about how Abigail had lost her glasses caught their attention. It didn't take long for Frisk to remove the pair on their face and stare down at them. They were dusty and a bit cracked. Could they have been hers? And if the notebook was also hers, then…

Briefly fiddling with their phone's inventory system, Frisk looked at the collection of items and weapons they'd gathered. A toy knife with a faded ribbon wrapped around the handle from the Ruins, a tough glove and Manly Bandana from Snowdin, and two sets of items from Waterfall: ballet shoes and a tutu, and glasses and a notebook. There was also the frying pan they'd found near the beginning of Hotland. All these possessions… had they belonged to the humans before Frisk? The idea would have seemed far-fetched to them upon first arriving, but the approximate four days they'd been wandering underground had taught them not to assume anything was "too unbelievable."

Once they'd finished their small feast and continued onward, that idea only got stronger when Frisk came across a heavily stained apron just sitting discarded on the ground. They noticed their soul pulse to identify it as armor, but wearing it along with the tutu would be uncomfortable at best, and it was far too large for them anyway. Nevertheless, Frisk picked up the apron and put it in their bag. Just leaving it on the ground didn't sit right for them, especially because it may have belonged to a previous human.

The path through Hotland was mostly devoid of monsters, and those that _were_ around didn't care about Frisk enough to attack. They spoke to their friends more, both on UnderNet and over the phone, and found great comfort in them. As enjoyable as it was to speak with them, however, Frisk had to keep forcing themselves to remember that they wanted to leave the underground. It was becoming more and more difficult to stay true to that goal.

Alphys was, as usual, ready to help with puzzles, but Frisk rarely needed the advice. Whenever they got past one easily, the Royal Scientist seemed to change. She became a bit more nervous and forcedly cheerful. Admittedly, it had the human somewhat unnerved.

"Hey… are you all right?" they asked during one phone call. "You sound worried."

"W-w-worried? Don't be ridiculous, I'm f-fine! Where are you now?"

Not entirely convinced, they looked around anyway.

"I'm on top of some kinda group of rock pillars with bridges… it's pretty dark here, are there any lights?"

"Yep! My hacking skills have got you covered!"

Alphys was silent for a few moments before the cave was illuminated by large floodlights in the walls… revealing Mettaton wearing a red suit (rectangular in shape to fit his body, of course) and seated behind a desk. The desk itself was surrounded by props and backdrops to resemble a studio for news channels on TV. A long screen on the ground read several headlines, including "MTT-Brand Still Top Rated," "Hotland Puzzles Mysteriously Activate and Deactivate in Linear Order Throughout Area as Human Progresses," and "Local Woshua Cleans Up Crime, Literally Finds Criminals and Douses Them in Soap. Crime Rate Doesn't Change but They Smell Amazing."

Wait, what did that second one say?

 **"Hello, darling viewers, and thank you for tuning in to MTT News! This is Mettaton, reporting live from eastern Hotland this evening! An interesting situation has arisen, and we at MTT News are here to bring you the inside story!"**

He turned to look at Frisk from behind his prop desk. The cameras set up around him focused on them.

 **"Brave correspondent! Please find something newsworthy to report! Our ten wonderful viewers are waiting for you!"**

They found it strange that he had so few monsters watching, given the small crowds of apparent fans they'd seen earlier, but that was hardly their concern. Mettaton was threateningly pointing a finger, which sparked with electricity, and they remembered how it had cut their HP down to half during the quiz. In no hurry to repeat that experience, Frisk began to survey the area. They soon noticed six things scattered around one of the large platforms, none of which seemed to belong there: a rough script for "Mettaton the Movie XXVIII, Starring Mettaton," a "Fashion Basketball" like what Papyrus had been wearing during their hangout, a completely nondescript glass of water, a case for a video game, a present addressed "To The Human," and a small white dog. Upon closer inspection, Frisk realized that said dog was in fact the very same animal that had stolen Papyrus' special attack. It stared at them with a confused look on its face, panting softly.

"What's this dog doing here…?"

 **"Ooh, what a sensational opportunity for a story! I can see the headline now: 'A Dog Exists Somewhere.' Frankly, I'm blown away."**

"Very funny… let's just report on this."

The dog cocked its head sideways at them.

 **"That's the spirit. Ahem… attention, viewers! Our correspondent has found a dog! Feel free to 'aww' now. That's right, folks! It's the feel-good story of the year! Look at its little ears, tiny paws, fluffy tail… wait a second, that's not a tail! That's… a fuse!"**

Frisk, shocked, stared at the small flame that had suddenly lit on the dog's tail. It either didn't notice or didn't care that part of it was on fire, still panting and giving them a blank look.

 **"That's right! That dog… is a bomb! But don't panic, brave correspondent… oh my! It seems that everything in this area is actually a bomb!"**

The other objects (including the glass of water, strangely) suddenly held sparking fuses and began moving around on their own. A massive red bomb descended from a hatch in the cave's ceiling and landed on a different rock pillar nearby.

 **"Oh dear! Human, if you don't defuse all of the bombs, this big bomb will blow you to smithereens in just two minutes! Then you won't be reporting 'live' any longer! Shocking, disturbing, horrific! Our nine viewers are going to love this! Good luck, darling!"**

"Alphys!" Frisk immediately shouted into the phone.

"I know, I can see you on the cameras! Y-you should have an app for defusing bombs, just get close to them and hit the defuse button!"

They sprang into action immediately, pouncing on the dog before it could escape. Frisk did as instructed, and sure enough found a "Defuse" app on their phone. With a quick press of a button, the dog's tail stopped sparking. It sat down and fell asleep, blissfully unaware of what was going on.

"G-good job! Go for the present, it's at the top-right of the area!"

Alphys was correct, as Frisk saw that the gift was sitting by itself on a rock pillar nearby. They traversed a few small bridges before reaching and defusing the present bomb.

"The glass of water's somehow moving around too quick for you to catch. I'll try to stop it with, um, electromagnetic fields! Go get the movie bomb now, it should be to the right!"

Frisk scrambled across more bridges, pillars, and even a conveyer belt to handle it. They continued working in conjunction with Alphys to track down all six bombs and defuse them, ending with the extremely agile glass of water, with twenty or so seconds to spare. Mettaton, watching casually from his desk, applauded.

 **"Bravo, darling! You've deactivated all of the bombs! Now that big one won't go off in two minutes… it'll take two seconds instead! Goodbye, sweetheart! Ahahahaha!"**

Completely caught off guard, Frisk didn't have a chance to brace themselves for the explosion. As it turned out, however, they didn't need to. The large red bomb didn't detonate.

 **"Ah. It seems that the bomb isn't going off."**

"T-that's because of me!" Alphys exclaimed through Frisk's phone. "While you were monologuing, I… I fixed… I mean I, um, changed…"

 **"Oh** ** _no!_** **"** Mettaton cried in what sounded like a forced tone. **"You deactivated it with your hacking abilities?"**

"Uh… y-yeah, I did!"

 **"Curses! I've been foiled again! Curse you, human! Curse you, Doctor Alphys, for helping so much! But I don't curse my… eight viewers for tuning in! Until next time, darling!"**

Mettaton changed into his flight mode and took off again.

"Well, we showed him," Frisk sighed in relief. "Thanks, Alphys. Your apps have been perfect for dealing with him so far! Every time he's shown up you've had a solution ready."

"Um! That's! Because! I… I planned for a lot of situations!" she seemed to force out. "Hey… I know I was a little weird at first, but… I-I think I'm getting more confident about guiding you now. So, don't worry about t-that big, dumb r-robot… I'll protect you from him!"

They smiled at her resolve.

"Sounds good to me."

At that point, however, Alphys muttered something into the phone, like she was talking to herself.

"…and if I really need to, I could just turn..."

"Did you say something?"

"N-no, nothing! I'll call you back later, keep going!"

She hung up abruptly, leaving a slightly puzzled human behind.


	39. Chapter 38: Near the End of Hotland

Chapter 38: Near the End of Hotland

Before long, Frisk received a phone call from Papyrus' phone, though Undyne was the one calling.

"Hey, punk! We saw you totally kick his butt on the news! And I bet Alphys was helpin' ya too, wasn't she?"

"Yeah, she's been a great guide so far. And she's pretty nice too."

"Oh my god!" Undyne seemed to giggle (a surreal noise for her). "You and Alphys becoming friends… it's kinda cute… I mean, uh… I'm tough! I like to eat rocks!"

She hung up soon after, likely out of embarrassment for showing her softer side. Before long, Frisk had reached another stretch of rock with a view of the Core in the distance. Alphys called again.

"Hey… are you holding up all right? You're not worried about meeting Asgore, are you?"

They paused to think about it.

"I'm… yeah, I'm a little worried."

"Oh, w-well don't be! The King is a really nice guy! I'm sure if you just talk to him, he'll let you see the Barrier. And then, with your human soul, you can go home! S-so no worrying, okay? Just forget about it and smile."

Frisk chuckled softly at her reassurance.

"I'll do my best. Thanks, Alphys."

The call ended soon after, and their attention quickly fell on a lone monster that suddenly appeared in front of them without warning. They hadn't noticed him, somehow, but now they couldn't seem to focus on anything else. He wore a dark suit and was almost humanoid in shape. The monster's head was largely covered by a creepy smiling mask, so all they could see of him was his hands, which were scaly and colored the same dull shade of gray as that thing that looked like Kid back in the Waterfall dump. He tightly clutched something white in his left hand.

"Did you say… Alphys?" he asked in a hollow voice.

"Uh… yeah, she's helping me… I'm doing well because of her."

"Ha ha ha… a reliable worker, isn't she? If you enjoy her company?"

They weren't sure what to think of this monster, as he leered at them through his frightening mask.

"Yes, Alphys may work faster… but do you know of Doctor Gaster?"

Frisk noticed that he spoke poetically. His sentences flowed in a rhythm and rhymed at the endings. It only added to his bizarre presence.

"Yeah, I know who he is."

"Then you know… one day, he vanished without a trace. They say he shattered through time and space. How can I speak of him without fear?"

The monster held out the white object in his hand. Upon closer inspection, Frisk realized that it appeared to be a shard of bone, though with a strange black haze around it.

"…I have a piece of him right here."

"That's… that's a part of W.D. Gaster?"

He cackled to himself, only to completely disappear before their eyes. The image of that bone stayed burned into their mind for some unexplainable reason. Frisk still had no idea who Gaster really was, aside from what the monsters they'd met in Hotland and Abigail's journal said. They willed themselves to force the thought of him out of their head; it would only distract them from their goal.

After taking another elevator, Frisk came across a large, circular chamber made of red metal panels. Cobwebs were strung up everywhere, save for a narrow path through to the next area. There was a single desk in the room, behind which sat a monster that Frisk could only describe as a "spider lady."

"Welcome to our parlor, dearie~ interested in some spider pastries? All proceeds go to real spiders, you know~"

She was almost double their height and dressed in some frilly red-violet gown with a bright crimson bow across her chest. Her skin was lavender, admittedly one of Frisk's favorite colors, but that preference didn't distract from her three pairs of spindly arms and five dark blue eyes arranged in an arc across her forehead. The woman's unusual appearance was only exaggerated by her silky-looking black hair, cut in a style quite similar to Frisk's but with two red ribbons in it. She was smiling at them, revealing two pointed fangs, and spoke with a moderately high-pitched voice that almost sounded flirty.

"Um… n-no, thank you…"

The woman's smile only widened, and she licked her lips softly.

"Oh, but are you sure? We could use the donations, you know… we're offering spider cider and spider croissants for sale. Come, support the spider cause~"

Frisk nervously edged away from her and left the room. Her eyes never left the human until they'd rounded a corner and was out of sight.

"That was creepy… moving on."

The next room was an enormous maze of the steam vents they'd encountered earlier. As Frisk navigated through them, they somehow got into a call with Papyrus and Undyne.

"Hey! You're in a place with vents? Did I ever tell ya this awesome puzzle idea I had, where it's a maze of vents, but the vents are on conveyer belts, and…"

"OH MY GOD! I HATE THESE IDEAS!"

"Oh yeah, and they'd include laser grids too!"

"NO? STOP? WHY? I THOUGHT YOU HATED PUZZLES?"

Undyne just roared with laughter on the other side of the phone call.

"Yeah, but I _love_ driving you crazy!"

After making it through the maze of steam vents, they checked UnderNet to see that Alphys was in a heated debate with someone else over the quality of a video game. The Cool Kids of Snowdin chat, meanwhile, was erupting with talk about Frisk and Mettaton.

 _MasterComedianSnowdrake: "_ _ **DeterminedSoul**_ _, you're totally awesome!"_

 _ChillDrake-the-Rebel: "yeah, show that bot whos boss"_

 _M0NST3Rkid: "I'm telling you, I knew Frisk was cool from the beginning!"_

 _icecap: "_ _ **M0NST3Rkid**_ _looks like you're crushing on the human now lmao"_

 _M0NST3Rkid: "I am NOT!"_

 _DeterminedSoul: "It's okay Kid. They just don't understand our love ;)"_

 _M0NST3Rkid: "0_0 not cool, yo"_

 _DeterminedSoul: ";) ;) ;)"_

 _MasterComedianSnowdrake: "So everyone, what's your favorite Mettaton Moment? Mine is when he accessorizes in the middle of something, no matter what it is"_

 _icecap: "I like it when he beats up the heel-turning villains."_

 _GlydeTheGreatest: "even during what's supposed to be a quiz show?"_

 _icecap: "ESPECIALLY then"_

 _ChillDrake-the-Rebel: "you dunno what you're talkin about. The best Mettaton Moment is right when everything looks the baddest, and he poses dramatically. like when he's cooking and the eggs don't turn out right."_

 _GlydeTheGreatest: "I should be on his show. I deserve the fame and glory"_

 _M0NST3Rkid: "Yo Frisk! We can't wait to see you on the next episode with him!"_

 _DeterminedSoul: "I'll do my best to entertain :)"_


	40. Chapter 39: Spider Dance

Chapter 39: Spider Dance

The next few rooms of Hotland were traversed uneventfully, save for Alphys calling at one point to breathlessly gush about a human TV show that she wanted to watch with Frisk at some point, if they ever got the chance. They agreed, and truthfully did want to watch with her, but also wondered if that chance would ever come. Once they left the underground, they could never return…

"Don't think about that, just keep moving," Frisk told themselves again and again, hoping to get any doubts out of their mind.

After solving another set of puzzles and opening a locked door, they came to what looked like an entrance to a very dark tunnel that smelled strongly of dust and cobwebs. Alphys wasn't answering the phone, so Frisk entered without any guidance. The tunnel looked straightforward, at least.

"Ugh, so sticky…"

The interior was plastered from top to bottom with very large webs that caught on Frisk's clothing from the moment they walked in. Tiny spiders scrambled away from the human, emitting what sounded like giggles as they retreated toward their webs. As they kept walking through the cavern, a high-pitched laugh rang through the air.

"Ahuhuhu~ do you know what we heard? We were told a human wearing a striped shirt and a ridiculous getup would come here soon."

The voice reverberated in the tunnel for a short time before the sound was muffled by all the webs. Frisk stumbled across the sticky ground in a panic.

"I hear they hate spiders… they like to stomp on them, and pull their legs off. I also hear…"

Once the human had made it about halfway through the cave, they found themselves trapped there with enormous arachnids standing guard nearby to cut off their escape route. Looking to the right, Frisk noticed the biggest web of all- its only occupant being that six-armed, five-eyed spider woman who'd offered to sell them baked goods not long ago.

"…that they're awfully stingy with their money. And it seems that part's true. Ahuhuhu… you think you're too refined for our pastries, don't you dearie~? I disagree with that notion. I think your taste… is exactly what this next batch needs!"

She covered her mouth and began giggling at them. Frisk's soul appeared as a fight began, identifying the woman as "Muffet, the Spider Queen."

"Is that your soul?" she asked, all five eyes staring directly at it. "The person who warned us about you offered a lot of money for it~ it'll make every spider very happy. Get the human, my dears!"

Frisk didn't want to further provoke Muffet by harming a spider, so the incoming swarm of them would simply have to be avoided. They took a running start and jumped over an approaching one, trying to find a way to escape.

"Running away, sweetie~? We can't have that."

Muffet whispered something to the spiders around her, which began to form a strange purple web around the arena. Frisk's soul changed to be the same color, and they were suddenly able to walk along the web strands easily. However, they couldn't flee the battle.

"I think purple looks much better on your soul! Ahuhuhu!"

She continued sending waves of spiders after them, never once losing her ominous grin.

"It's time for you to meet my pet!" she squealed after a while.

The small arachnids all scuttled away as- to Frisk's horror- an utterly enormous spider shaped like a muffin crawled down from the cave's ceiling. It stood at no less than ten feet tall, with sharp legs ready to strike. The spider opened its mouth and screeched loudly, chasing the human across the purple webs.

"Aw, I think he likes you~!" Muffet taunted. "Soon enough, we'll finally get to reunite the spider clans… oh, how we've waited for this day!"

Frisk jumped between the strands of web to escape from her monstrous pet.

"What're you talking about?"

"Oh, haven't you heard? Spiders have been trapped in the Ruins for generations! They can't leave; even if they burrow under the door then Snowdin's fatal cold will decimate the poor things! But if we can raise enough money, we'll be able to rent a heated limo to get them here! And with the leftovers… perhaps we can take a vacation! Or build a spider baseball field!"

At the mention of the spiders in the Ruins, Frisk put two and two together. Now it made sense why she'd been eagerly trying to sell pastries.

"W-wait a minute! I know those spiders, I gave them money for a donut!"

Muffet paused.

"Oh? How can we be sure of that? What if there's a different human around here, hmm?"

"There's no other humans, as far as I know. And my proof is… is…"

They frantically activated their phone's inventory system to generate the Spider Donut that they'd purchased all the way back in the Ruins.

"…is that I have the donut right here!"

Her pet abruptly stopped chasing them. Muffet herself was clearly thinking hard about the situation. A small spider came up to her in the large web, carrying a letter.

"What's this? A telegram from the clan in the Ruins? Hm… it says that not only did you donate to their cause, but… you never harmed a single spider! Oh my, this has all been one big misunderstanding! I'm terribly sorry for the trouble, dearie~ I'll make it up to you somehow. Everyone, leave this child alone."

The fight ended with Frisk's soul turning back to its normal red state and disappearing. Muffet's pet and countless minions ceased their pursuit.

"Thanks…" they said, panting from running so much.

"It's no problem. Feel free to come back here any time, human. For no charge at all… I'll even wrap you up and play with my pet again! Ahuhuhu, just kidding~."

Frisk brushed a few cobwebs off their clothes.

"By the way, who was it who told you about me?"

Muffet frowned, trying to remember it.

"You know… I couldn't actually see him very well. He had a delightful voice, but always stayed in the shadows near one of the exits. Strange indeed… I wonder who it was."

"Ah, I think I can answer that question," a high-pitched and horrifyingly familiar voice suddenly chimed in from the corner. Frisk quickly turned around to face the speaker, only to feel their blood run cold. A single flower with bright gold petals smiled at them cheerfully, sprouting from the cave floor.

"Howdy! Remember me, your best friend?"

"Y-you… Flowey?!"

"Boy, you sure catch on quickly," the flower muttered. "It's so nice to see you've made it this far! I was sure you'd have bit the dust way before now, but I guess nothing can keep you down!"

Frisk backed away from him nervously.

"Aw, what's the matter? Is your Determination failing you?!" Flowey said with a toothy smile. "After all you've been through, you're afraid of a little old flower? That's just PATHETIC!"

Muffet scowled at him.

"Spreading lies about my customers isn't looked upon kindly here, you know. We're not going to work for you."

"Well, you can forget your payment anyway, bug lady!" he spat. "I can't believe even you failed to kill the human! Such a waste of effort on my part!"

Flowey turned to Frisk.

"And look at you, all 'no killing anyone' over here! You make me sick, you know that?! Are you really planning to escape without harming any monsters?"

"T-that's right," they replied, mustering up all their courage. "And once I'm back on the surface, I'll have the last laugh. Nobody's dying on my watch."

As if things weren't already bad, Flowey's smile just got even wider for some reason.

"You really think… you don't even know… hahaha! Well, I can't WAIT to see that!"

"I've heard enough out of you, flower!" Muffet shouted. "Get out of here before we tear you from the ground!"

"Certainly… take care, human. Good luck with Asgoooore~!"

Flowey sank back into the earth to leave, cackling to himself. The Spider Queen just sighed.

"Do be careful, won't you dearie? I don't like the looks of him."

"…you and me both."


	41. Chapter 40: Mettaton's Last Stand

Chapter 40: Mettaton's Last Stand

Shortly after leaving Muffet's cave, Frisk found themselves fenced in a large blue-lit area by electric barriers. There was a staircase leading up to a tower, which strangely looked more like a prop for a play than an actual structure. As it turned out, that was exactly what it was. Mettaton, wearing a garish, frilly blue dress, peeked out from behind a doorway in the tower and looked down at them. It was then that Frisk noticed the cameras set up around the stage, as well as faint orchestral music playing from some unknown source.

 _"Oh no…"_

 **"Oh my! That human… could it be… my one true love?"**

They had just walked into a musical drama with a murderous robot. He slowly rolled down the stairs and came to a halt before them, whispering.

 **"Play along, won't you darling? The audience is looking forward to our grand reunion!"**

Having not forgotten about his powerful electric blasts, Frisk swallowed their pride and took his large, metal hands to begin dancing. Humiliation on public television was a small price to pay if it meant escaping with their life.

 **"Splendid. I will handle the vocals, just follow my lead. Let's knock 'em dead!"**

Mettaton began to roll around the stage, forcing Frisk to stay close as he moved. He was singing, too, in a loud and (admittedly) somewhat pleasant tone.

 **"Oh my loooove… please run awaayyyy…"**

Too bad that the actual lyrics were unbearable for Frisk. Romantic songs were no interest of theirs, and coming from Mettaton of all people made it worse.

 **"Monster Kiiing… forbids your staayyy…"**

They could only think of how hard Sans, Papyrus, and Undyne must have been laughing, if they were watching (they sincerely hoped not). Frisk was even more worried about Kid and the other Snowdin monsters; they would never let this go.

 **"Humans must… live far apart… even if… it breaks my heart…"**

Suddenly, rose petals were raining from buckets tied to the cave ceiling, sprinkling over them and Mettaton. Their soul seemed to want to tear itself out of their body in shame, and frankly they couldn't blame it.

 **"They'll put you… in the dungeon… it'll suck… and then, you'll die at last…"**

Well, that certainly took a dark turn. For a moment, Frisk had forgotten that he actually wanted to kill them and take their soul.

 **"Really sad… you're gonna die… cry, cry, cry… so sad it's happening…"**

The two finished after what felt like an eternity, standing in the center of the stage. Mettaton let go of Frisk's hands and backed away slightly.

 **"So sad, that you're going to the dungeon for your soul to be harvested… well, toodles!"**

Without warning, a trap door opened up beneath Frisk's feet. They dropped into a lower floor with more cameras watching them. Their robotic adversary flew in through the hole and hovered above them, groaning dramatically.

 **"Oh no! My beloved has fallen into a trap! A trap with a puzzle so dastardly, they will surely perish!"**

Frisk noticed what he was referring to: a long stretch of the corridor's floor was covered with multicolored screens. It was the same thing they'd seen Papyrus try to use back in Snowdin, but on a much larger scale. This time, the puzzle looked fully operational.

 **"O, heavens have mercy! The horrible colored tile maze! Each color has its own sinister function. For example, green tiles will make a noise, and then you must fight a monster. Red tiles… wait a minute, haven't you seen this before? Wonderful, then you should know how this works! Better hurry up, sweetheart… or else you'll be incinerated! You have thirty seconds. GO!"**

Enormous flamethrowers mounted on tracks activated behind Frisk. They immediately started dashing through the colored tiles in a frenzy, but didn't remember the rules Papyrus had told them. As such, they ended up stumbling around in a daze with the flashing colors giving them a headache. Mettaton was flying above them, howling out more lyrics to the same tune as before, but this time with the intent to ridicule Frisk. Thirty seconds passed, and they hadn't made it very far into the maze at all.

 **"Oooh, I'm sorry. It looks like you're out of time! Here come the flames, darling!"**

Just as the jets of fire began moving toward Frisk, they shut off without warning. The puzzle deactivated as well, leaving them free to move.

 **"Oh no,"** Mettaton cried. **"The walls of fire have been disabled! Is this the work of Doctor Alphys' brilliant hacking skills?"**

Sure enough, Frisk's phone received a call from her. They put it on speaker so she could talk to Mettaton.

"T-that's right, it is! We've foiled you again! J-just give up, you'll never beat us! Go home, your puzzle's over!"

 **"…'over,' Doctor? Oh, dear Alphys, I disagree! Don't you remember what the green tiles do? You hear a noise, then must fight a monster. Well… that monster is me!"**

Mettaton's jet booster retracted into his body and was replaced by his single wheel as he crashed down in front of Frisk, beginning a fight.

 **"This is it, darling! Say goodbye!"**

Alphys, still on the phone, shouted a command to the human.

"H-hey, I know this looks bad, but… there's one last feature on your phone you can use! Go find the Yellow app and select it!"

Their robotic adversary seemed to be waiting for them to make the first move, so Frisk followed Alphys' instructions. "Yellow" caused their soul to resonate in Mettaton's presence, shimmering with energy and changing to become that color. They felt a strange sensation.

"Now, um, focus all your strength on your soul!"

"Here goes nothing…"

Frisk concentrated hard. Their soul pulsed and released a glowing yellow projectile that struck Mettaton head-on. He recoiled from the shot, making an electronic warbling sound. They fired at him a few more times with their soul. Despite having sustained no visible damage, Mettaton rolled away while speaking in a very bored voice.

 **"Ooooh! OOOOHHHHHHH! You defeated me, you were stronger than I thought, how can this be, et cetera, whatever…"**

Once he was gone, Alphys spoke again.

"Uh… l-looks like you finally beat him! You did a really great job out there, Frisk!"

"Hey, I couldn't have done it without your help."

She nervously laughed.

"What? Oh no, you were the one doing all the cool stuff! I just wrote some silly programs for your phone. Um… h-hey, this might sound a little strange, but… c-can I tell you something?"

They could hear a sudden unease in her voice and grew slightly concerned.

"Sure, anything."

"Okay… before I met you, I d-didn't… I didn't really… like myself very much. For a long time, I just felt like a total screw-up, even as the Royal Scientist. I thought I couldn't do anything without feeling like I let everyone down… but, um, guiding you has made me feel a lot better about myself… so, thanks for letting me help."

"It's no problem, really. I'm glad to have you on my side with the others, Alphys."

"YEAH! You two RULED!"

"OH MY GOD, FRISK! YOU GOT TO DANCE WITH METTATON! YOU'RE SO LUCKY!"

They were surprised to hear Undyne and Papyrus join the call, but they welcomed the sound of their voices.

"O-o-oh, h-hi Undyne! And Papyrus too!" Alphys stammered out.

"Um, you saw me with Mettaton?" Frisk asked nervously.

Undyne roared with laughter. "Did we EVER! I didn't know you were such a good dancer, punk!

"YOU HAVE GREAT SKILL THERE, HUMAN, BUT IT SEEMS YOU FAILED TO COMPLETE THE TILE PUZZLE! I'LL HAVE TO EXPLAIN THE RULES FOR YOU SOMETIME!"

"Yeah, you should. Alphys, where to next?"

"T-the Core is just past MTT resort, which should be up ahead. That's right, Mettaton owns an entire hotel… it used to be an apartment building before he bought it. By the way, what happened to you about ten minutes ago? I stopped seeing you on the cameras."

Frisk scratched their head.

"I got into a mess with some spiders… met their Queen, Muffet. She let me go safely after a while, though."

"HMM… I WONDER IF ANY OF MY ONLINE FANS ARE SPIDERS," Papyrus mused aloud into the phone.

"Do spiders even use the internet?" Undyne asked.

A third voice responded from their end of the call.

"of course, they love surfing the _web._ "

"OH MY GOD, SANS! WAIT… YOU'RE RIGHT ABOUT SOMETHING?"

"hey, i always _stick_ to the truth."

"THAT ONE WASN'T EVEN A CLEVER ATTEMPT!"

Undyne cut in again. "Alphys, did you say a hotel?"

"Um, yeah! Monsters from all over the kingdom stay there."

"Wow, that's awesome! I wanna stay at a fancy hotel!"

"REALLY? ME TOO!"

"L-let's all go on vacation sometime!" Alphys cheered. "We can plan it together!"

Frisk remained silent, uncomfortably reminded that they would be leaving their friends behind once they got back to the surface. Everyone else in the call seemed to realize that as well. Papyrus was the first to break the brief silence.

"UH… SANS, WHAT DO YOU THINK OF- WAIT, WHERE DID HE GO?!"

"Aw, crap! And we were just getting to an important talk!" Undyne groaned. "Let's go find him, Papyrus. I'll check Grillby's, you go look near his station!"

"RIGHT! TAKE CARE, FRISK! WE'LL TALK TO YOU LATER!"

They hung up. Alphys chuckled and cleared her throat.

"Well, you'd better keep going. You're almost there!"

As Frisk began walking toward the path back onto Hotland's main trail, they noticed something half-buried in the dirt nearby. It was some kind of cowboy hat, clearly very old and dirty. Sitting inside it was a shiny revolver. Their soul pointed out that the hat was a yet another kind of armor, and the gun was a powerful weapon. The latter item had no bullets of any kind, but it didn't bother Frisk seeing as they had resolved not to kill anyone. Nonetheless, they scooped up both objects (putting the hat on their head over the bandana). Considering their soul's reaction to being near the items, Frisk guessed that they had also belonged to a former human.

Somehow feeling a sense of companionship by carrying around the weapons and armor of their predecessors, they marched onward to MTT Resort.


	42. Chapter 41: A Tale of Knock-Knock Jokes

Chapter 41: A Tale of Knock-Knock Jokes

 **Author's Note: Wow, over 6500 views! Thanks so much for the support!**

 **Suppose I should also clarify something that was asked in reviews. The two royal guards mentioned in Abigail's journal are in fact RG01 and RG02, the guards Frisk encounters in the original story. I felt like adding them here wouldn't do much except distract from the main plot, but I didn't want to leave them out entirely. As a result, they were alive when Abigail was underground.**

 **One final note: the events of Frisk's dinner with Sans here are inspired by a certain short comic from the Undertale fanbase. I can't seem to find it, but let the record show that credit for it goes to the comic's creator (you might know what I'm talking about once you get to that part). If anyone can point out who it is, I'd be happy to properly give credit next chapter.**

 **With all that out of the way, on with the story!**

The hotel's appearance was nothing short of extravagant, but coming from Mettaton that was to be expected. It was a towering building, reaching as far up in the Hotland caves as possible. Bright neon lights dotted the indigo-colored stone sides, right down to the front entrance. Elegant glass windows could also be seen everywhere, all with yellow light flashing through them. A pair of decorative shrubs were planted outside the door, which had a glowing sign above it reading "MTT Resort: Where Your Glamourous Dreams Come True!" Small winged portraits of Mettaton himself were on either side of it, further solidifying his ownership.

Frisk noticed someone familiar standing off to the side of the front door. It was Sans, who they'd just heard talking on the phone less than three minutes earlier. Seeing as there was no other way he could've gotten from Snowdin to inner Hotland in that time, they assumed he'd just warped himself there or something.

Although… it would explain how he kept disappearing at will…

"hey. i heard you're going to the core. how about grabbing some dinner with me first?"

Their brief meal back at his hot dog stand had only kept them full for a short time, so Frisk agreed without hesitation.

"great, thanks for treating me," Sans snickered. "kidding of course, i'll take care of it."

He turned toward an alley leading behind the hotel.

"over here, there's a shortcut to the restaurant this way."

As they walked after him, they noticed that he was leading them toward a solid brick wall. Frisk felt the same nausea as they had back in Snowdin, and a few seconds passed in a haze before they found themselves sitting at a table with no real knowledge of how he'd gotten them there.

The restaurant was even more elegant than the exterior of MTT Resort. It had a calming, cool aesthetic; in fact, most of the objects in the room were some shade of blue or purple. The floor was tiled in alternating blue squares, lilac cloths covered all the tables, and even the wallpaper was deep purple. Various plants were potted all around the restaurant, and photos of guests were hung up on corkboards everywhere. Frisk looked down at the table at which they sat, feeling a little uncomfortable in such a fancy room. It was beyond any wealth they'd ever seen. Sans didn't appear bothered, though, and casually ate a steak that was suddenly in front of him. An identical one, evidently summoned by magic, was also presented to the human. They began trying to cut it while their skeletal friend talked.

"so. your journey's almost over, huh? you must really wanna go home."

"Uh-huh," they replied through a mouthful of steak.

"i know the feeling, buddy. but hey… sometimes, maybe it's better to just take what's given to ya, isn't it?"

"What do you mean?"

Sans leaned back in his chair.

"down here you've already got food, drink, friends… is what you have to do really worth givin' all that up?"

Frisk was silent, quite uncomfortable thinking about it. Reaching the surface was their top priority, but… a large part of them didn't want to leave the underground. They had found so many friends in just a short time- now approaching six days according to their phone- and had grown used to being among monsters. Could their mission to prove their bravery truly outmatch their friendships?

"ah, forget it. i'm rooting for ya anyway, kid. we all are."

"…thanks."

Sans noticed their discomfort and quickly changed the topic.

"hey, let me tell you a story."

"Okay?"

He grinned softly, a peculiar look coming over his face. Sans had given off a friendly disposition in the past, but this expression was more than that. Frisk couldn't exactly tell what he was showing, though.

"so i'm a sentry in snowdin forest, right? i sit out there at my station and watch for humans. all things considered, it's pretty boring."

"I feel you. Sitting at a desk for hours is the worst."

"you said it. fortunately, though, i have something to entertain myself. deep in the woods, there's this HUGE locked door. perfect for practicing some knock-knock jokes when i get new material."

They immediately knew what he was talking about: the exit to the Ruins, sealed off from the rest of the underground. Frisk cracked a smile, wondering where he was going with this.

"one day, i'm knocking 'em out like usual, with nobody else around… or so i thought! eventually, i give the door this extra-loud tap and say 'knock knock.' and suddenly… from the other side… i hear this woman's voice."

The human fought the urge to burst out laughing, not wanting to interrupt Sans. He began to imitate the woman with a higher-pitched drawl, almost musical in tone.

"'who is there?' she asks. so, naturally, i respond: 'dishes.' 'dishes who?'"

He gave them a wink before continuing.

"'dishes a very bad joke.' then she just howls with laughter, like it's the best joke she's heard in a hundred years. so i keep 'em coming, and she keeps on laughing. best audience i've ever had. after a dozen, SHE knocks on the door with her own joke."

Frisk's memory seemed to flash all the way back to Toriel's house, and to the book in her room. It was opened to a page covered in nothing but corny jokes and puns. Now it all made sense.

"'knock knock!' she says. 'who's there?' i ask back. 'old lady.' 'old lady who?' 'oh! i did not know you could yodel!' impressive, huh? needless to say, this woman was extremely good. we kept telling jokes to each other for hours until i had to leave. papyrus always gets cranky without his bedtime story. still, she told me to come by again, so i did. and the next day I went there again. and again. it's a regular thing now, telling bad jokes through that door. it rules."

They were grinning from ear to ear, strangely enthralled with what Sans was saying. To make it even better, they finally realized what the look on his face was: fondness. Frisk felt a huge sense of relief that Toriel wasn't completely alone, and Sans was the most serious here that he'd ever been while still maintaining a goofy presence. They wondered just how close the two had gotten.

"one day, though, i noticed she wasn't laughing very much. she actually sounded pretty upset. when i asked what was the matter, she said something strange: 'if a human ever comes through this door, could you please… watch over them and protect them, will you not?'"

Their inner glee at the story was put on hold, and Frisk listened intently to every single word he said. His tone had become more somber, which coming from him surely meant that this was something important.

"How'd you respond?"

"that's the interesting part. see, i hate making promises. and i don't even know this lady's name. but someone who sincerely likes bad jokes has an integrity you can't say 'no' to, ya get me? i said i'd do my best."

Frisk decided not to mention her name to Sans, as Toriel must have had a reason for keeping it a secret. But that didn't stop them from having an idea.

"Hey, I know that lady! I have her phone number, wanna talk to her?"

The skeleton abruptly flinched in surprise. Interestingly, the sides of his head turned a light shade of blue, as if he were blushing.

"what- really?"

"Yep! She doesn't pick up the phone whenever I call, but maybe you'll get lucky if you give it a shot!"

For the first time since they met him, Frisk saw Sans' composure appear to break. They handed him the phone after dialing in a number and watched his slight blush spread across his skull. He nervously laughed at the sound of a "click" to indicate that the phone had been picked up.

"uh… knock knock… wait, i guess i can't say that over the phone… um, l-let me try again-"

"SANS?!" a voice that was most definitely not Toriel shouted through the receiver, "ARE YOU USING THE HUMAN'S PHONE TO TRY AND PRANK ME, THE GREAT PAPYRUS?!"

All of the color completely drained from Sans' already-white skull, giving him a hollow and ghostlike appearance. He had such a crushed expression that they felt a little bad. Just a little, though. Frisk stifled a giggle.

"s-sorry, bro… wrong number…"

He hung up and stared at them.

"real funny, frisk…"

"Pfffthehehehe! I'm sorry, I just had to!"

"hey… you might wanna show a bit more appreciation."

Sans' voice was different all of a sudden. It was more like a soft growl than his usual deep but laid back tone.

"you owe a lot to that lady, kid. that promise i made to her… you know what would've happened if she hadn't said anything?"

They stared in fright as the two small lights inside his eye sockets disappeared, leaving nothing but black, hollow holes that looked like they could suck Frisk in altogether. Sans stared directly at them, his voice becoming a sinister rasp that sounded nothing like him.

 _"You'd be dead where you stand."_

Things were totally silent for a few seconds, then his eyes and voice changed back to normal. Sans waved off the startled look on their face.

"hey, lighten up, bucko! i'm just joking with ya. besides, haven't i done as promised? you haven't even died a single time… huh? am i wrong?"

Frisk's scared expression was replaced with one of shock. Why would he say such an odd thing, unless…

…unless he knew what they could do. He'd even nodded in apparent understanding back when they reset to spare Undyne in Waterfall. How much did Sans know about their soul?

"well, i'm going now. take care of yourself, kiddo… someone cares an awful lot about you."

Casually waving goodbye, he got up from the table and left. Frisk slowly finished their food, mulling over what he'd said. It was quite a story, and as happy as hearing that he and Toriel were friends made them feel… something was itching at the back of their mind. Sans was a monster like all the others, so surely he'd want to escape the underground just as much. He had even told them that, if not for his promise, he would have killed them. Sure, he claimed to be joking, but that was too serious a matter for him to really be kidding. And Undyne had said that one of the human souls they'd collected came from an unknown source, just sitting in a container in the middle of Snowdin Forest… if that was before Sans and Toriel met, then could he have…?

"No," Frisk told themselves. "There's no way."

It was a weak self-reassurance, one that they didn't entirely believe.


	43. Chapter 42: The Core

Chapter 42: The Core

Once Frisk had finished their steak, they ordered a "MTT-brand Glamburger" and a sword-shaped Legendary Hero sandwich to go. The cashier, a frustrated teenage monster called Burgerpants apparently due to an unfortunate incident he'd had while trying to smuggle burgers in his pockets, gave them their food and halfheartedly waved them off. Frisk rented a hotel room with what G they had left (still a decent enough amount) and spent a night resting up for the final stretch of their journey. Their sleep wasn't interrupted by dreams of their home life, thankfully. Instead, this time they dreamed of their new friends. It was nice…

They woke up the next morning, their seventh morning underground, feeling fully rested and ready to go. The nearly constant running and hiding they'd gone through during the adventure- especially since it had been nearly two days since the last time they slept- had taken its toll, yet somehow sleeping in Mettaton's hotel erased any exhaustion they had. Perhaps their body was still reacting to the magic in the atmosphere.

"All right… New Home, here I come."

Frisk walked through the rest of the hotel's ground floor until they reached the entrance to the Core on the far side. Alphys, tracking the location of their phone, gave them a call.

"Good morning. Ready to go?"

"Yep… you said this should lead to an elevator straight to Asgore's castle?"

"That's right, and I've got a map of the Core's layout. It's designed to have hallways that can be swapped whenever necessary, but most of the time it follows a schedule. The next change shouldn't be for a few days…"

They received a call from Snowdin, as well, making it a three-way message between the skeletons and Undyne, Frisk, and Alphys.

"So... you're going into the Core, huh? It's a huge tower of energy with electric fields intersecting at many points," Undyne said. "That's what Alphys tells me… point is, I dunno if your phone will be able to connect to ours in there."

"WE MAY NOT BE ABLE TO SPEAK WITH YOU FOR A WHILE, BUT KNOW THIS: WE'RE STILL SUPPORTING YOU IN SPIRIT!"

"stay determined, kid. you've got this."

"Good luck out there, Frisk!" they heard Monster Kid yell. He was apparently standing with Papyrus, Sans, and Undyne. "If anyone can get through safely, it's you! So don't let us down, yo!"

The human felt themselves tear up at their friends' heartfelt words of encouragement. Even though Frisk knew the time would come when they'd have to leave, it was more unbearable than they could have ever imagined.

"E-everyone… thank you…"

"Time to go, Frisk," Alphys said wistfully. She could tell how hard it was for them. "I'm going to reduce the call to just us; since my phone connects to yours directly through Hotland's power lines, we'll still be able to talk. I also have access to your phone's camera, so I can see where you are."

With that, it was just them and the Royal Scientist. The back door to MTT Resort led to a wooden bridge extending across a short gap. Beyond it was the Core's entrance, bathed in neon blue light. Frisk saw two dark silhouettes standing in the doorway before quickly moving out of sight.

"Are those workers I just saw?"

"What? That can't be right… nobody's supposed to be around at this time… o-oh well, we can't worry about that now! Get inside."

They walked across the bridge and got their first view of the Core's interior. The floor, walls, and ceiling were all vibrant shades of blue, with lights along each and every surface for, initially, an almost blinding effect. Pipes ran across the ceiling, humming with the amount of raw energy flowing through them. Directly in front of Frisk was an elevator, flanked by two doorways.

"Ready? This is it! Take that elevator and you'll go straight to the top of the Core!"

Not wasting any time, they approached it and pushed the button to summon it. Nothing happened; it was apparently out of order.

"What? Why isn't it… i-it's okay, just go through the right door and keep heading up!"

The alternate path she suggested just led them to a dead end.

"That's not on my map… um… try the left instead?"

Frisk backtracked to do that. Thankfully, the left door brought them to what looked like a way forward.

"Okay, this route should do the trick- watch out!"

Alphys, from Frisk's camera, had seen something dart out of the shadows. They were just barely able to dodge as a magic blast whizzed past them. Turning to face the attacker, they got ready to further evade.

"Hocus pocus!" it shouted, charging another blast.

The monster had a somewhat birdlike head with white feathers, but the rest of its body was obscured by what appeared to be a black wizard's costume, complete with a hat. Two floating orbs on either side of it were evidently the source of its power. Frisk's soul called this monster "Madjick," a hired mercenary who "can only speak in magic words."

"Abra CADABRA!" Madjick cried at them.

Frisk ducked under an attack that seemed intent on chasing them down, upon which the monster's other orb released a stream of cross-shaped energy beams. One struck their soul, reducing its HP to 17/20, but otherwise they were unharmed. Trying to think of a way out of the situation, they stared fixedly at the orb that had been chasing them. It promptly stopped moving and fell to the ground. This seemed to irritate Madjick.

"Alakazam!"

Its projectile orb released another flurry of magic blasts, but it too stopped moving when Frisk stared at it. With seemingly no other weapons, Madjick fled from the area. Alphys called to check on them.

"That was close… there shouldn't be any monsters here… r-r-right?" she sputtered. "Just keep going!"

After another short walk, Frisk reached a force field blocking the path. There was a switch mounted on the wall next to it.

"Okay, that switch will deactivate the barrier, but… it'll also turn on some lasers that will move toward you. The order is orange, orange, blue. So… m-move through the first two, and stop at the last one! Good luck!"

They followed her instructions, but were caught off guard when the lasers coming their way were actually in the order of blue, blue, orange. Despite that, Frisk reacted quickly and got through unscathed.

"Oh… I g-gave you the wrong order…" Alphys groaned, her tone becoming increasingly desperate. "L-let's just continue onward! There should be a crossroads up ahead, I think… try going to the right- no, up!"

Sure enough, there was a branching path. Once again, however, Alphys had told them the wrong information: the upper route led to a battle with an armored "Knight Knight" monster that they ended up having to sing to sleep before leaving. Frisk took the right path, which didn't lead to a dead end but instead a massive system of blue and orange lasers.

"Okay, no more messing around… I'm gonna turn those lasers off," their guide said firmly. After a few seconds, they were still online. "Uh… d-damn it, this isn't supposed to… fine, I'm just gonna turn off the power for that whole node!"

That tactic seemed to work. The room went dark, and the lasers shut down, allowing Frisk to walk across with no difficulty. At least, until Alphys cried for them to stop moving. Within seconds the power was back on, and their way forward was blocked by a long row of blue lasers.

"It's turning itself back on… o-okay, I'll shut down the power for a few seconds at a time, so you start running while the lasers are off. They might turn back on, though, so… stop moving, and the blue lasers won't hurt you. Just like blue magic attacks, right? Wait for me to turn off the power again…"

Frisk understood what she was saying, but Alphys seemed to be trying to reassure herself more than them. They followed her tactic, alternating between walking and standing still while the blue lasers were on so they wouldn't take any damage, and eventually made it past.

"I'm on the other side," they reported.

"Great! S-see? I have everything under control. E-everything's under control!" she said, again more to herself.

They kept walking, eventually reaching a series of rooms arranged in a grid formation. Alphys could be heard messing with her map, but she was whimpering in anxiety.

"Okay, you should… you should… I don't know? This doesn't look like my map at all… I-I have to go. Sorry."

She hung up, and Frisk had no choice but to proceed alone. The air reeked unpleasantly of ozone, to make matters worse. Nevertheless, they stayed determined. Frisk's soul updated its Save File to that point.

"Which way…"

The human began trying to navigate the grid of rooms, but were quickly set upon by a trio of mercenaries.

"Target sighted," one of them announced. "Get their soul!"

The monster who'd spoken bore a suspicious familiar look- it was an armored Whimsun from the Ruins. Their soul called it "Whimsalot," and its two cohorts (respectively, a large frog covered in spines and a Loox that could morph its face between several sets of eyes) "Final Froggit" and "Astigmatism."

 _"How fitting,"_ they thought as they dodged the mercenaries, _"that I'm fighting stronger versions of monsters from the Ruins at the end of my adventure. Brings it full circle…"_

Final Froggit lunged at them with a croak of deadly intent, even sticking to walls to attack from multiple angles. Its size, however, caused it to move rather slowly. After a while, it had tired itself out and backed away. Whimsalot repeatedly tried striking with its spear, but somehow sensed that Frisk wasn't an evil person. It offered its apologies before bowing out of the fight. Astigmatism, meanwhile, was the hardest enemy to deal with. The monster relentlessly fired lasers from its eyes at them and showed no signs of backing down until it asked a very strange favor of the human.

"…pick on me."

"What? Why?"

"I have never faced adversity in life… I have _always gotten_ my way. Show me what it's like to be put down!"

Astigmatism had stopped attacking, waiting for their response. Seeing no other way out, Frisk took a deep breath and repeated one of the things their own parents had said to them.

"You're pitiful!" they cried. "I've never such a weak person. How do you expect to get anywhere in life while you're always hiding behind others?! You're a disgrace, you hear me?"

Having to say that ripped open painful memories for them. Frisk dropped to their knees and began shaking. They felt tears come to their eyes.

"I… I wish you were gone…" the child finished quoting.

Astigmatism put a clawed hand on their shoulder comfortingly.

"…thank you. I understand now. The exit to the Core is to the right of here, and no other mercenaries are in your way. Farewell, human."

With that, it walked away. Frisk wiped their eyes to clear their vision and continued wearily.

"I have to find the red trees… then they'll understand… then they'll like me…"

At the very end of the path, just as Astigmatism had said, was a red-outlined archway, beyond which was the way to Asgore's castle. An elevator next to it would apparently lead back to the Core's entrance, and it seemed to be working now. Strangely convenient… regardless, Frisk walked through the archway. They weren't sure whether or not they should have felt surprised to see Mettaton in the next room, a barely-lit circular chamber.

 **"Oh, yes. There you are, darling. I suppose it's time to have our little showdown. You'll finally get to stop the 'malfunctioning' robot… NOT! Malfunctioning? Reprogramming? Get real, human! Haven't you guessed the truth? This is all just one big show! An act!"**

"What are you talking about?" they asked.

 **"Alphys has been playing you for a fool this whole time. As she watched you on the cameras, she became quite attached to you indeed. She desperately wanted to be a part of your adventure, so she decided to insert herself into your little story."**

"You're lying. She's my friend, she's helped me get through Hotland and outsmart you time and time again."

 **"Exactly! Have you noticed how strangely convenient this area has been for you? Puzzles reactivated one at a time as you proceeded, elevators would go offline when you needed them most, and yet she'd always have an alternate route for you to take, or advice with the puzzles. Alphys even enlisted me to torment you as the 'villain' of your quest. All so she could rescue you from dangers that never even existed!"**

They didn't want to listen to him, they knew he was against them, and yet… what he was saying made an unsettling amount of sense. When she didn't know what was happening in the Core, she'd gotten anxious and depressed. Could Alphys really have set up their trials in Hotland for her own wish-fulfillment?

 **"And now, it's time for her finest hour. She's waiting outside this very room as we speak. In a few seconds, she'll barge in here and 'deactivate' me, 'saving' you one last time. Finally, she will be the heroine of your adventure… that was the plan, anyway."**

Mettaton emitted a loud beep, and the doors behind him and Frisk both closed, locking them into that room together. The human heard a faint tapping on the other side of the door they'd came through, and the sound of Alphys' voice.

"H-h-hey, what's going on? The d-door just locked itself!"

"…he's telling the truth, then," Frisk thought, feeling a sudden hollowness. They still wanted to trust Alphys, despite what she'd done, but their achievements together had been meaningless.

 **"I've grown tired of this predictable charade,"** the robot continued, sounding very smug. **"I have no desire to harm humans, far from it. My one wish is to entertain. After all, the audience deserves a good show, right? And what's a good show without a plot twist?! Sorry, folks! The old program's been cancelled, but we've got a finale that'll drive you wild!"**

The room began to change. Bright red stage lights flared down on Frisk and Mettaton, while cameras emerged from panels in the walls, filming them both as their last confrontation began.

 **"** ** _REAL_** **DRAMA!** ** _REAL_** **ACTION!** ** _REAL_** **BLOODSHED!"** he roared. **"On our stunning special episode…** ** _ATTACK OF THE KILLER ROBOT!_** **"**


	44. Chapter 43: Death by Glamour

Chapter 43: Death by Glamour

Frisk's soul was already in front of them, and Mettaton began launching miniature versions of himself, which in turn fired heart-shaped electric blasts. The human ducked and weaved between his attacks frantically, at a loss for what to do. His metal body, according to their soul, was impervious to damage, and he wouldn't be talked out of fighting.

 **"Yes! I was the one that re-arranged the Core! I hired those mercenaries to kill you, and still you prevailed! But that was a short-sighted plan on my part… killing you myself would be a hundred times better!"**

They activated their phone's app to turn their soul yellow again and returned fire. However, the energy blasts coming from their soul merely plinked off the robot's metal exterior with no effect on him.

 **"That worthless pea-shooter won't harm me, darling. Don't you understand what acting is?! I was merely pretending to be damaged last time!"**

Frisk swung the frying pan they'd found in Hotland to block Mettaton's attacks. It worked, but he showed no sign of slowing down.

 **"I've seen you fight, human. You're weak. If you continue past here, Asgore will take your soul and destroy mankind! But if I take it, I can stop his plan! I'll cross the barrier and become the star I've always dreamed of being! Hundreds, thousands, MILLIONS will admire me! So what if you have to die for that to happen?! That's show business, baby!"**

His arms extended and he began trying to physically attack Frisk, swinging them around wildly.

"You're insane!"

Their phone rang. Noticing a brief lull in Mettaton's strikes, they answered to hear Alphys frantically offering advice.

"Uh… I can't see what's going on in there, but there's one last way to beat him! You know how Mettaton always faces forward?"

"Yeah, I do. Does he have a weak spot on his back?"

"S-sort of! Don't judge me for this, it's still a work in progress, but… there's a switch… if you can turn him around and flip it, he'll be, um, vulnerable… good luck!"

The call ended, and Frisk wasted no time putting her plan into action.

"Here goes nothing… hey Mettaton, there's a mirror behind you!"

A rather on-the-spot idea, but surprisingly it worked. The robot turned to look the other way, excitedly talking about "looking perfect for the finale." Sure enough, there was a large switch on his back. Frisk dashed up to him and pressed it, upon which he abruptly stopped all movement.

 **"Did you. Just flip. My switch?"**

Mettaton clutched at the top of his rectangular body as the screen on his front flashed wildly. Copious amounts of steam flooded the room, obscuring him from view for the most part. Frisk could see him appearing to change shape through the haze, becoming a much more human-looking figure.

 **"Ohhh yes…"** he said in a deep, sultry voice after completing his transformation. **"If you flipped my switch, that can only mean one thing: you're desperate for the premiere of my new body. How rude… lucky for you, I've been aching to show this off for a long time. So, as thanks, I'll give you a handsome reward. I'll make your last living moments…"**

The steam suddenly cleared away, and Frisk could see his new form at last. He was, indeed, very humanoid in appearance. Mettaton's face was made of stark white metal and gleamed in the spotlights around them, partially covered by slick black hair (which was actually a solid piece of metal made to look like hair) so that only one eye was visible. His newly-acquired mouth was curled into a smile, giving him a confident look. Adding to that effect was his stance, with shapely legs stretched outwards and a steel pair of low-heeled magenta boots clicking against the floor. His arms hadn't changed very much, still segmented and ending in human like hands. Mettaton's most striking new feature was his torso, sporting elongated shoulder armor with a shiny black coat of paint. His upper chest was the same color as his boots, and the core of his body was a white heart- his soul, apparently- implanted in his waist. In total, he had a sleek and stylish look that Frisk would've found downright cool if he hadn't been trying to kill them.

 **"…absolutely** ** _beautiful!_**

The cameras focused on them and Mettaton, and a large screen appeared above the two. It looked like a live feed of the episode's ratings with a curve to show it, and judging by the incredibly high number displayed there, an enormous number of monsters were watching. Their soul called his new form "Mettaton EX."

 **"Lights, camera, ACTION!"** he cried, throwing a kick in Frisk's direction. They narrowly avoided his sharp heels and backed away.

 **"Drama, romance, bloodshed! All that and more, right now! Smile for the camera, darling~."**

Mettaton wasn't just attacking them, he was dancing in the middle of the fight. His limbs all flared out in separate directions, forming multiple stylish poses in front of the cameras. Evidently, he was still focused on providing a good show to boost his ratings.

 _"Maybe I can use that to my advantage…"_

 **"I'm the idol everyone craves! You've got no chance!"**

Frisk jumped aside as more miniature Mettatons appeared, firing at them. They decided to play along and posed heroically, watching the ratings board take a slight curve upwards.

 **"Time for an essay question, human! What is your favorite thing about me?"**

He'd stopped attacking to ask his question. The cameras and microphones around them all turned toward Frisk. Their plan was simple: if they could get his show's ratings high enough, he might decide to spare them.

 _"What should I say?"_

They started looking over his new body and thinking of what might make him happiest to hear. Sleek legs, a colorful appearance, an admittedly impressive voice, and great acting skill all came to mind, but Frisk decided on none of them, instead answering with something more original.

"You're an inspiration to monsters everywhere!" they said aloud. "All over the underground, people are watching your show and thinking 'man, I wish I could be like him.'"

The ratings increased even more because of that. Mettaton seemed to notice and started laughing good-naturedly.

 **"Right you are, darling! Kind viewers, let's give a big hand for our lovely guest: Frisk the Human! After all, this is the last time you'll see them!"**

His segmented arms stretched out to try and punch Frisk, but they brought up the frying pan and swatted them away, posing again afterwards. Mettaton looked admiringly at their getup. The garish combination of a cowboy hat, bandana, single glove, glasses, tutu, and ballet shoes strangely appealed to him.

 **"I like your style, human. And your fashion sense is truly unique. Such a wide assortment of accessories!"**

"Well, I do dress for the occasion," they replied, ducking under another one of his kicks.

 **"You've shown everyone your heart across your journey… now, let me show you mine!"**

The white heart on Mettaton's torso emerged, pulsing with energy in response to Frisk's soul. It began releasing shockwaves that sped toward the human and delivered powerful electric damage.

 **"Surprised at what my soul can do? This new body is truly a work of art!"**

He kept firing electricity at Frisk, but they were able to dodge this time and shoot at him with their own soul due to it being yellow again. They traded fire for a bit until Mettaton, who'd sustained several blows, retracted the heart.

 **"Not bad, dear. But I'm just warming up! How are you on the dance floor, I wonder?"**

A disco ball descended from a hole in the ceiling, projecting lasers into the arena with them. Assuming that they worked like normal monster attacks, Frisk was careful not to move whenever a blue laser passed through them, and kept moving through orange ones. Mettaton danced between the lasers with the human (whose ballet shoes were surprisingly helpful in that scenario). The ratings board was skyrocketing.

 **"Can you keep up the pace?!"**

The disco ball spun faster and faster. While they still managed to dodge for the most part, some of the lasers managed to hit them. Their soul's HP was brought down to 9/20 by the time the ball went back into the ceiling.

 **"You're looking a bit worn out there, sweetheart."**

Despite being hurt, Frisk gave him a defiant pose.

"I'm still determined to succeed! You'll never beat me!"

If the ratings board was any indication, the audiences across the underground were growing more and more excited by the performance, as the curve only climbed higher.

 **"We'll see about that soon enough! Lights, camera, bombs!"**

Mettaton threw small white spheres in their direction that exploded in white flashes, not managing to hit them but instead daze Frisk with the bright lights. He took the opportunity to strike them with one of his fists, and they toppled to the ground.

 **"Oh my, our guest has been injured!"**

Frisk shakily got to their feet, digging through their inventory for a healing item. They eventually settled on the Glamburger they'd just bought, taking a large bite out of the sparkly food. It was surprisingly good, but not on the same level as Grillby's.

 **"Ah, I see you enjoy my brand! That's so kind of you... good thing you're in tip-top shape, 'cause things are really blowing up now!"**

With their HP fully restored, Frisk was able to better anticipate the storm of bombs that Mettaton began throwing. They even caught a few in their frying pan and tossed them to the side, striking more dramatic poses.

 **"We've grown so distant, darling,"** the robot teased. **"How about another heart-to-heart?"**

His soul emerged again to shoot more electricity at Frisk's. They were ready for it and shot from their own soul again, hitting Mettaton with lethal accuracy. After a few more strikes, his soul trembled and zoomed back into his torso, sparking with energy. It was apparently too much for him, as his arms suddenly broke off his body.

 **"Nngh… w-who needs arms with legs like these?!** **I'm still going to win!"** he declared in a slightly nervous tone.

Without arms, his fighting style changed. Mettaton couldn't throw bombs anymore, so he had his miniature selves carry them instead. When Frisk manage to avoid those, he began trying to throw rapid kicks at them. They simply twirled out of the way in a flashy performance for the cameras, and smiled at how high the ratings were getting.

 **"The show…"** Mettaton groaned, **"must go on! Drama… a-action…!"**

"Keep 'em coming! I'm not gonna get hit at ALL this time!"

 **"Lights… camera… enough of this! Do you really want humanity to perish?!"** he hissed. **"Or do you just believe in yourself that much?"**

Frisk grinned confidently.

"I've made it this far, haven't I? I won't let anything stop me now."

 **"Haha… how inspiring! Well darling, it's either me or you! And I think we both know who's going to come out on top! Witness the true power of humanity's star!"**

Mettaton's soul was out again, firing the most intense blasts it could manage at Frisk. They didn't let themselves be intimidated, though, and fired back with their own projectiles. Soon enough, the soul retreated into the robot, and his legs fell off as well. Now he was just a head and torso, sitting helplessly on the ground.

 **"Impossible… could you be the star? Can you really save mankind?! That's not-"**

Mettaton's attention was caught by the ratings board, which had exceeded ten thousand just a few moments earlier.

 **"Ooh, look at these ratings! This is the most viewers I've ever had! It seems we've reached the call-in milestone, so one lucky fan will have the chance to talk to me before I leave the underground forever!"**

The phone system built into his body was already ringing. Frisk stood there and waited as he answered.

 **"Hi, you're on TV! What do you have to say on this, our last show?"**

"…oh… hi, Mettaton…" a soft voice said. Frisk could hear it through the receiver on the robot's body, recognizing the caller within seconds. It was Napstablook.

Interestingly, Mettaton's expression changed. He looked utterly shocked, almost sad, while he listened.

"I really liked watching your show… my life is pretty boring, but seeing you on the screen brought excitement to me... vicariously."

Frisk recalled seeing a flashy show on Napstablook's TV. This must have been what he was watching.

"I guess this is the last episode? I'll miss you… Mettaton… sorry for talking so much…"

There was a click.

 **"No, wait! Hold on, Blooky- he… he hung up…"**

The look of unbearable sadness on Mettaton's face and the name he'd just referred to Napstablook as caused them to make a stunning realization. Both Abigail's journal and the ghost himself had made reference to his cousin, who'd left home a long time ago. He'd called Napstablook "Blooky," apparently… which could only mean one thing.

"Mettaton, was that your cou-"

 **"I'll take another caller!"** he said loudly, cutting Frisk off. A storm of calls came in within seconds, all from different monsters across the underground.

"Your show made us so happy!"

"You've made my family more excited than they've ever been!"

"I don't know what I'll watch without you, Mettaton!"

"Is this really the end?"

"There's a Mettaton-shaped hole in my Mettaton-shaped heart."

"…I'm a huge fan. It hurts to see you go…"

"You're the underground's brightest light!"

Mettaton huffed a small laugh, and Frisk suspected that if he'd had real eyes he would have been crying.

 **"Ah… I see… everyone, thank you all so much…"**

He smiled up at the human from the ground.

 **"Darling. Perhaps it might be better if… if I stay here for a while. Humans already have stars and idols, don't they? Monsters… they only have me."**

Frisk nodded.

"If you leave, the underground will lose its spark. You'll leave an aching void that can never be filled the same way."

 **"That's right… I'm afraid I'll have to delay my big debut on the surface. Besides, you've proven to be very strong. If anyone can make it past Asgore, it's you. I'm sure you'll do a splendid job protecting humanity."**

"I won't let you down," they promised earnestly.

Mettaton looked at the floor with a grimace.

 **"It's for the best, anyway. The truth is, this form's energy consumption is still inefficient. In a few moments, I'll run out of battery power…"**

"Will you be okay?"

He winked encouragingly.

 **"Of course I will, Frisk. I want to say thank you… until now, I'd forgotten how fun it is to perform with others. But being here on stage with you, with the whole underground watching… it gave me the reminder I needed. Knock 'em dead, darling! And to my viewers: you've been a great audience! This is Mettaton, signing out!"**

The fight ended, and his eyes faded to black. All around Frisk, the cameras and stage lights also shut down, then the doors opened to let them out of the arena. Alphys, who had been standing just outside, rushed in and checked on her creation.

"Thank god, it's just his battery… putting his limbs back on will be no problem."

"Alphys… you really set me up throughout Hotland?"

She turned to face them with her head hung in shame.

"T-that was pathetic of me… thinking I could save you all those times, when it was me who put you in danger anyway. I can't ever make this up to you…"

"I forgive you," they said shortly.

The Royal Scientist looked shocked.

"R-really…? Even after I lied to you? And put you in harm's way?"

Frisk just smiled at her.

"Well, you did do all that stuff… but you saved me right now, didn't you? You told me to flip Mettaton's switch, if I hadn't done that then I might not have been able to beat him."

"Hehehe… okay… l-let's go, the elevator to Asgore's castle is right this way."

The two left Mettaton behind as they continued down the corridor. Alphys was laughing nervously, and though she had a smile it looked forced. She was sweating, too.

"You feeling okay there?"

"H-huh? Oh, don't worry about me… you must be pretty excited, right? You're about to meet Asgore, and I'm sure you'll be able to convince him to let you go home…"

They finally arrived at the elevator, but Alphys didn't go near it.

"Sorry, I can't come with you. I still have some things to take care of at the lab."

Frisk gave her a thumbs-up and stepped into the elevator.

"It's fine, I can go the rest of the way. Thanks for all your help, Alphys. Tell the others I said hi, okay?"

She was tightly clenching her fists, then sighed deeply. Her expression could only be described as heartbroken.

"I can't take this anymore… I h-have to tell you."

They were confused. Had she been hiding something from them?

"Tell me what?"

"I should've told you this from the start… I lied to you. A human soul alone isn't strong enough to cross the Barrier. It takes at least a human soul… and a monster soul. If you want to go home, you'll have to… to take his soul. You'll have to kill Asgore. I'm sorry."

Alphys turned around and ran off as the elevator doors closed in front of Frisk.

 **End of Part Four**


	45. Chapter 44: New Home

**PART FIVE: SOUL OF DETERMINATION**

Chapter 44: New Home

The elevator was uncomfortably silent for Frisk, but that could have simply been their shock over what Alphys had just said.

"I have to… I really have to kill Asgore?"

It wouldn't be easy, that much was certain. Practically everyone they'd met had said he was a kind person who wouldn't want to fight, but had also cited his formidable strength. Both factors, in addition to Frisk's stated goal of not killing anyone, overall worked wonders against their confidence. Could they really go through with it?

Once the elevator opened, those thoughts were pushed aside for the time so they could get a better look at their surroundings. Just as Alphys had said, Frisk appeared to be in Asgore's castle. The walls were built from whitish-gray bricks and stones carved into elegant patterns, and numerous arched windows offered an impressive view of the city of New Home. They noticed an odd sense of familiarity which lasted a few moments before human realized why they felt that way: the city's design was practically identical to what they'd seen of the Ruins. With the exception of the color, nearly all of the buildings had similar appearances, and streets seemed to be ordered the same way. The key difference this time was that hundreds of monsters bustled back and forth below them, whereas the Ruins were almost deserted. Nobody was in the castle corridors, strangely, not even any guards. Taking that as a good thing, Frisk kept walking on the path until they came to an even more bizarrely familiar sight.

It was a small, box-shaped building in the center of the castle. Upon walking inside, they noticed that it looked like an almost perfect replica of Toriel's house. Furniture was in the same places as before, carpets arranged similarly, and even the air temperature seemed to match. The only visible difference was that numerous potted golden flowers that bore a suspicious resemblance to Flowey were displayed throughout the house. Very strange indeed… was this truly where Asgore lived? A note taped to a wall confirmed that.

 _"Howdy! I'm in the garden if anyone wants to visit. Just take the stairs and go straight ahead, you can't miss it! Sincerely, King Asgore."_

Regardless of what his subjects said about him, Frisk's young mind had expected the Monster King to live in something like a fiery doom fortress with elite security guards stationed everywhere. This quaint little house didn't fit that description at all, and being exactly like where Toriel lived only made it stranger.

They wanted to just go straight through, but curiosity ended up getting the better of them. Frisk wandered to the left and came across Asgore's living room, once again identical to the one in the Ruins. A pink, fuzzy sweater with "Mr. Dad Guy" printed on the front was draped over the armchair.

"That's right… Abigail's journal mentioned him having a son. What was his name again?"

It eluded them, but not for long. Frisk backtracked and went down the right-hand hallway to find Asgore's bedroom- the door was locked, so they couldn't go in- and the room corresponding to the place they'd slept in during their brief stay at the Ruins. It looked like nobody had been there in years, as everything was covered in dust. The toy chest, the two twin-sized beds, the dresser, the empty photo frames, and the abandoned plush toys sitting near one bed all gave off the obvious impression that a child- or rather two children- had lived in that room. Frisk noticed a dusty book beside the plushes and opened it.

"Journal of Prince Asriel Dreemurr… the King's son."

Most of it was filled with stories about mundane things, but at some point the entries became largely focused on someone named Chara. They remembered hearing that name in Abigail's journal, as well as the two times they died. At last, they'd learn who that was. Flipping through Asriel's writings (and admittedly feeling a bit guilty over peeking at a private book), they quickly got the impression that "Chara" was a human. In fact, she was the first human to ever fall underground, about a century and a half ago. Judging by how highly the Prince wrote of her, it seemed like they'd been very close friends, almost like siblings. And yet… some of the antics that Chara apparently got up to were a bit too mean-spirited for Frisk's liking. They wondered where Asriel (no human could live for over a hundred and fifty years, so they assumed that Chara was gone) was at the moment. Possibly in the garden with Asgore?

 _"Chara's condition isn't improving. She got sick five days ago, and nothing anyone's doing can help her."_

Frisk had a sinking feeling that they knew where this little story was headed as they kept reading excerpts from the journal.

 _"…told Mom and Dad her last wish today. She says she wants to see the golden flowers from her home village back on the surface. That's past the Barrier, though, and we need a human and monster soul together to go through it. The only way that'll happen is when she…"_

 _"Chara died last night. It's been decided, later on I'm going to take her soul and carry her body to the surface. She'll get to see those flowers now… I miss her…"_

The rest of the journal was written in different handwriting. It seemed complete, without any missing pages or smudged-out sections (though the writing itself was a bit hard to read).

 _"A final report on the status of the royal family, recorded by Doctor W.D. Gaster. Nearly four months ago, Prince Asriel took the deceased child's body and travelled to the surface, passing through the Barrier. What exactly happened up there is not known, but we've confirmed that upon arriving at the human village, Asriel was set upon by frightened residents who thought he himself had killed Chara._

 _With the power of a human and monster soul together, he could have destroyed them all… but he did not fight back. Asriel bore the attacks with a smile and returned through the Barrier again, before collapsing in the castle. He lasted just long enough to convey this story and soon after turned to dust which spread across the garden. Both his soul and Chara's vanished._

 _The kingdom is now in a state of turmoil; having lost two children in one night, something changed in Asgore. He declared that all humans were to be considered our enemies, and that we must collect the souls of any others who come here to break the Barrier and have our revenge. The Queen was evidently disgusted with this plan, fleeing from the capital without looking back. She has never been found._

 _Since that fateful day, two humans have entered the Monster Kingdom, and their souls were taken soon enough. They are light blue and orange in color and emit a great deal of energy; Asgore has allowed me to study them. As for the corpses of Chara and the new humans, I know not what fate befell them."_

Frisk closed the book with a light sigh. The Dreemurr family's story seemed to be a tragic one, and they finally understood why monsterkind wanted to obtain human souls so much. At least, until they'd befriended many of the underground's residents…

As they turned to leave Asriel and Chara's room, Frisk noticed two items sitting on the opposite bed: a heart-shaped locket with "Best Friends Forever" written on it, and an old, rusty dagger. Their soul identified both objects as helpful tools. They put the locket around their neck with to add even more to their unsightly mismatch of accessories from past humans, but hesitated to pick up the dagger. Frisk really had no desire to fight Asgore- and expected that he felt the same- but there was only one way out of the underground. They had no choice, and picked up the knife. A strange, uncomfortable sensation of power tingled within their soul.

"…I'm so sorry for this…"


	46. Chapter 45: Judgement of the Soul

Chapter 45: Judgement of the Soul

After leaving Asgore's house through the stairs- once again exactly the same as those where Toriel lived- Frisk walked across another corridor with a view of the city before coming to a building unlike anything they'd seen in New Home so far. It almost resembled a cathedral of sorts, being a very wide hallway with tall pillars on both sides and stained glass windows displaying the Delta Rune between them. Golden light shone through said windows from an unknown source, presumably just magic. The corridor was entirely empty aside from Frisk.

"I'm almost at the end… I'll be out soon…"

Their Save Point updated at that spot, sensing their Determination. The human marched forward through the room bravely, only to stop as something stepped out from behind a pillar. It was impossible to make out much of the figure due to it standing in the shadows not hit by the gold light, but Frisk could tell that it wasn't much taller than them. A circular blue glow emitted from the left side of what they assumed was its head, and the figure's gaze seemed to pierce their body. Frisk's soul emerged with the usual stats next to it- LOVE 1, EXP 0- but a fight didn't begin.

 _"So,"_ the shrouded monster said aloud in a quiet growl of a voice that echoed through the air. _"You finally made it. The end of your journey is at hand, human. In a few moments, you will meet the King of Monsters. Together… you will determine the future of this world, and of the species inhabiting it. That's then. Right now, you will be judged. You will be judged for every action you have taken, and for every EXP you have earned. Am I understood?"_

They nodded slowly. "What does EXP mean, though?"

 _"It is an acronym. It stands for_ _ **'Execution Points.'**_ _A way of quantifying the pain you have inflicted on others. When you kill someone, you gain more EXP. Gain enough, and your LOVE will increase."_

Frisk wasn't surprised that the speaker knew what LOVE was if he knew about EXP, but they gulped nervously in wonder of what this could all mean.

 _"LOVE, too, is an acronym. It stands for_ _ **'Level of Violence,'**_ _your capacity for hurting others. The higher your LOVE gets, the more easily you can bring yourself to do harm. The more you kill, the easier it becomes to distance yourself from morality. And the more you distance yourself, the less you will hurt while harming those around you."_

The speaker was quiet for about thirty seconds as the judgement began, its blue "eye" shining brilliantly and scanning Frisk. They felt quite scared, finally knowing why their soul's LOVE would only ever increase when they killed Toriel and Undyne on those dreadful first attempts. Sure, they'd restarted from their Save Points and reverted the LOVE gain, but the knowledge wasn't any less unsettling. The blue light disappeared, and the monster stepped forward out of the shadows. His identity was impossible to mistake, from his smile to his clothing.

"…but you? you never gained any LOVE," Sans said with a calm and collected voice.

"None at all," Frisk replied, trying to hide their shock that he was the one who'd just given them that morbid speech. Something was even odder: his tone of voice. It wasn't satisfaction or pride in Frisk, but relief. They couldn't tell why, but Sans looked like he'd just narrowly avoided an explosion and was genuinely grateful to be alive.

"'course, that doesn't mean you're completely innocent or naïve. just that you kept a certain tenderness in your heart. no matter the struggles or hardships you faced, you always strived to do the right thing."

"Uh huh. I refused to hurt anyone, and I even made friends with a lot of monsters along the way."

Sans chuckled lightly.

"yeah, you did… you never gained LOVE… but you gained love. does that make sense?"

Frisk smiled at the skeleton, happy to see him one last time before leaving.

"It does. And I know I made the right choice."

"very true, kiddo. you could've made a MUCH worse one, like deciding to kill us all."

"…"

"now," Sans continued, breaking the silence, "you're about to face the greatest challenge of your entire journey. your actions here will determine the fate of the entire world. if you refuse to fight, asgore will take your soul. he'll have the seven he needs to free the monsters and destroy humanity. but if you kill him and go home with his soul, we'll all stay trapped underground. what will you do, frisk?"

Truthfully, they weren't sure. The human couldn't give him an answer.

"well, i'm sure you'll figure it out when the time comes. if i were you, i'd have thrown in the towel way before now. but you didn't make it here by giving up, did you?"

"Nope. I stuck it out through thick and thin."

"right. you have something called 'determination,' and a lot of it. as long as you do what's in your heart, and hold on to all of your hope… i believe you can do the right thing. we're all counting on you, frisk. good luck."

Sans paused all of a sudden.

"actually… i have a request to make. i wanna test your determination abilities, so… here's what i need you to do. restart from your save point and listen to me talk again, then tell me this secret code word…"

He whispered something to them. They frowned, but nodded in agreement. Frisk concentrated all of the Determination in their body to return to the point just before their judgement. It worked, and the shadowy figure stepped out in front of them again. Time had been successfully rewound.

 _"So, you finally made it. The end of your journey is-"_

"Hi, Sans. You sent me here to talk to you from, uh… the future? Or maybe a different timeline?"

The skeleton abruptly dropped his mysterious act and came forward to speak to them.

"oh really? well, if i did then i'd have given you my secret code word… go on, tell me."

"Right. I… I am a… I'm a stupid doodoo butt," Frisk said quickly.

Sans loudly snorted.

"nice one. i wonder if i should have you do it again and tell me the secret secret code word: 'i am the legendary fartmaster.'"

"Is it gonna turn out like this?" they asked exasperatedly.

"probably, yeah."

"Then I'm sorry, but I have to get going."

"hehehe, all right. thanks, kid. oh yeah, one more thing before ya go…"

Frisk felt a sudden shift of weight in their pocket. Pulling out their cell phone, they saw that a heavy blue key had appeared connected to its key chain.

"i think i can trust you with the key to my bedroom. if ya ever find yourself back in snowdin, you can finally learn the truth."

"What truth-"

Sans disappeared right in front of them in a flash of blue light. Frisk felt a certain satisfaction at finally getting to actually see him vanish.

"Well… it's time to go."

They waked out of the corridor and found themselves facing a branching path: one way, marked by a sign, led to the throne room, while the other was a descending flight of stairs. Frisk took the latter path, wanting to know what was down there. The answer was a row of seven coffins, each with a different colored heart on the front.

"These must be where the human bodies are…"

Each one was engraved with a name, but only two caught their attention: "Abigail" on the coffin with the purple heart, and "Chara" on the red one. Interestingly, the latter coffin in particular wasn't fully closed- revealing that it was empty. What looked suspiciously like mummy wrappings were littered across the bottom. Seven humans had fallen underground before Frisk, and six had lost their souls to the Monster Kingdom. The child, the eighth human, muttered a quiet vow that they wouldn't end up the same way. They walked back to the entrance to the throne room and took a deep breath.

The time had come to meet King Asgore Dreemurr.


	47. Chapter 46: Asgore

Chapter 46: Asgore

As it turned out, the throne room and the castle garden seemed to be one and the same. It was a wide room with no floor but rather a large patch of grass, with golden flowers (the same kind that had appeared all throughout the underground) growing everywhere. The sound of birds chirping emanated from somewhere nearby. An enormous stained-glass ceiling projected a shadow across much of the room, save for a few sections of light shaped like the Delta Rune.

Frisk's main focus, though, was the person standing in the middle of the chamber. Asgore- it must have been him- was facing away from them, but they could see just how enormous he was in person. He stood at more than twice their height and three times their width, if how spread apart the large purple cape he wore was any indication.

"Dum dee dum…" he hummed cheerfully. "Oh, is someone there? Please excuse me for a moment, I have almost finished watering these flowers…"

Frisk swore that his deep, warm voice sounded familiar, but from where they didn't quite know. After a few more seconds, Asgore stood fully upright and turned to face them. He was revealed to be a white-furred monster with floppy ears, giant curved horns, and a deep blonde beard that stretched from his chin to the top of his head. An elegant cloak was draped around his body, with golden shoulder pads extending from the sides. To complete the regal ensemble, he wore a golden crown. For a moment, Frisk wondered if he was some kind of lion monster, but they eventually decided that he looked more like a goat.

"Howdy! What can I do for you…"

Upon getting a good look at them, Asgore's expression changed from a friendly smile to a stunned gasp. He took a short step backwards.

"…oh… I so badly want to ask, 'would you like a cup of tea?' But… you understand how it is."

"Yes, I do," Frisk muttered softly.

He looked around at the light streaming into the garden.

"Nice day today, huh? Birds are singing, flowers are blooming… a perfect day for a game of catch."

They were sure they'd heard his voice somewhere before.

"Ah… you know what we must do, child. When you are ready, please follow me."

Asgore walked out of the room through a door on the far side of the garden. Frisk proceeded after him, taking care not to step on any of his flowers. They passed by his throne, stationed in the center of the garden, and noticed what looked like a second one covered with a white tarp in the corner. The tarp was dusty, and it was clear that the other throne had been there for a long time. It was most likely the missing Queen's.

They were side-by-side with Asgore in uncomfortable silence while they walked. Frisk didn't know where he was leading them.

"How tense…" he said after a while. "Just think of it like a visit to the dentist."

The human didn't think that was an appropriate comparison given what was about to happen, but that was the absolute least of their worries. Asgore came to a stop at a doorway.

"Are you ready? If not, it is fine… I am not ready either."

They didn't respond, just following behind him. The pair came to an empty chamber, wherein the floor seemed to vanish beneath their feet. Frisk was hard pressed to describe what exactly they were looking at. It appeared to be an endless hallway that combined blinding white light and suffocating shadows together, eventually reaching a point where they curved and spread outwards to loop around again.

"Asgore, sir? Where are we?"

"This… is the Barrier. This is what keeps us trapped underground."

They couldn't believe their eyes. The end was right in front of them.

"If by any chance you have unfinished business… please go back and do what you must. It can be something as simple as having a good meal, or a calming walk…"

"No, it's okay… let's just get this out of the way."

The King turned to look down at Frisk with a kind smile, and at last they remembered where they'd heard his voice. Both those times when they'd died, a man had been calling out to encourage them. It was him, but they couldn't figure out how he'd been doing it.

"This is it, then. Ready?"

A sudden tremor tore through the ground, and seven objects rose up from slots in the floor. They were cylindrical glass containers, six of which were glowing. Upon closer inspection, Frisk realized what they were: heart-shaped human souls were levitating within them, colored green, dark blue, purple, yellow, orange, and light blue. Their predecessors' souls, taken by the Monster King. The seventh container was empty.

Frisk held their frying pan in one hand and the rusty dagger they'd just found in the other. They looked up to see an odd light fill the room. Twilight, it seemed, was able to shine down on them and Asgore through the Barrier. Their journey was coming to an end at last, and they were more determined than ever. Yet… they knew what had to be done to escape. This time, it really was "kill or be killed."

"Human child…" Asgore said. "Your name is Frisk, right? Captain Undyne told me about you."

"That's right."

He smiled grimly. "It was truly nice to meet you… I wish it could have been under different circumstances. Goodbye…"

The King took a step forward and was suddenly brandishing an enormous red trident, which he swung down at them. Frisk jumped aside, trying to find a good angle of attack. Asgore's reach far outmatched theirs, so getting close would be a problem. Their only projectile weapon was that revolver, but it didn't even have any bullets.

Frisk began slowly shuffling in a circle around him as he swung again. The trident missed and connected with the ground, causing a terrifying shake to rumble through the air. His power was extraordinary, and far beyond nything they'd been expecting. Still, he'd missed, and they took the opportunity to rush in and slash at Asgore's thigh with the rusty dagger. As it turned out, he was wearing a suit of armor beneath his robes, and a loud metallic clang could be heard as the dagger bounced off. It seemed to have left a bit of damage on the suit, though.

Asgore took another swing with his weapon, managing to strike Frisk's soul and sending them flying backwards. Their HP dropped tremendously, and they were forced to stay away from him while they dug through their bag for a food item to heal themselves. The first thing they grabbed was Toriel's slice of butterscotch-cinnamon pie, which they took out of its foil wrapping and bit into. Its smell wafted through the air, giving an almost encouraging effect.

Interestingly, Asgore noticed the pie's scent too. His hands, tightly gripping the trident, began to tremble for a second. It looked like he was remembering something. Frisk's soul showed them a message.

 _"Asgore's attack and defense have dropped significantly."_

They decided not to question why at the moment, focusing on the battle at hand. Getting back on their feet and taking another bite out of the pie, Frisk held their frying pan ready. Asgore had a dark frown on his face as he held out one hand. Fiery magic began to charge in his palm and erupted outward in a wave. Frisk swung the frying pan, which somehow collected the flames and sent them back at the King. He stumbled as the blast hit him, caught off guard.

Asgore sprang toward the human with his trident ready to stab them. They were able to step aside just enough to avoid it, but the frying pan was knocked out of their hands and sent skidding away. Using their close proximity as an opening, Frisk punched him with the tough glove. A sizeable dent appeared on his armor, and a flicker of pain shot across his face. Asgore responded by raising a leg and kicking them away. His strength, like their soul had said, had gone down.

Frisk dug around in their bag and pulled out their phone, using its inventory system to call up the other weapons they'd collected. Abigail's journal was the first thing to appear, glowing a bright purple in response to their soul. It released magic blasts that struck Asgore directly in his chest, causing him to stagger. Frisk didn't hold anything back and retrieved the toy knife from their inventory, throwing it at him. Despite being made of plastic, it lodged itself in part of his armor. He was clearly getting worn down.

 _"I don't want to do this… but I can't escape if I don't."_

Frisk finished eating the slice of pie, fully restoring their HP. They ran at Asgore and jumped high over his trident as he swung it again, kicking him in the chest with their ballet shoes. He let out a hard cough and feebly tried punching at them. The blow connected, but Frisk was hardly worse for wear. They held the rusty dagger out and slashed across his forearm, causing Asgore to back away to recompose himself.

Abigail's journal kept firing magic at him, leaving him distracted while he blocked the attacks with his trident. That gave Frisk an opportunity to take out the empty gun, which their soul said could still be fired through the power of their Determination. Giving it a try, they took aim and pulled the trigger. A thin beam of yellow light emerged from the barrel, directly piercing Asgore's body. He dropped to his knees, defeated at last. Frisk put their weapons away, but still held the rusty dagger just in case. It wasn't a happy victory.

"S-so…" the King groaned, struggling to avoid collapsing entirely. "That is how it is… you are powerful indeed, child. Well done…"

Frisk didn't move from where they were standing.

"I remember the day after my children died…" he continued, talking both to them and to himself. "The entire underground was devoid of hope, our future had been taken away by the humans once again. In a fit of anger, I declared war. Any human who came here would have to be killed, and we could use their souls to break the Barrier and escape. Then, with my newfound godlike powers… I would destroy humanity. Monsters could rule the world in peace."

Asgore was crying.

"The hopes of my subjects returned, but my wife was disgusted with me… she left and has never been seen since. I cannot blame her. Truthfully, though, I don't want power or war. I just want my people to be happy… I just want to see my wife again, and my children again… but that is impossible now."

He looked up from his kneeling position, making direct eye contact with Frisk.

"Please, little one… do you know what Boss Monsters are? Our souls can survive outside of our bodies momentarily, so you will be able to absorb mine. You have earned your freedom, Frisk. Please finish me off and take my soul… then you may leave this place."

They raised the rusty dagger with a shaking arm, ready to bring it down on the defeated King. As they held it up, though, their will to fight broke. Frisk had come all this way, and made so many friends… now they just couldn't bring themselves to kill Asgore. They let the knife fall to the ground at their feet.

"Maybe… staying here underground won't be so bad after all," they said.

He was shocked at their response.

"After everything I have done to hurt you… you would rather stay down here with us and suffer, than live freely on the surface?"

Frisk gave him a warm smile.

"Believe me, I'd be much happier with my friends here."

"Ha ha ha… you are a funny child. I promise, we will take care of you as best as we can. We can share stories, enjoy meals together… you will get to live with the wonderful friends you've made."

"I'd like that. Here, let me give you food or something to patch you up… monster food seems great for healing."

Frisk started rummaging through their bag and pulled out the Legendary Hero sandwich they'd bought from MTT resort. They turned back to Asgore and held it out for him generously. The human felt an enormous sense of satisfaction. Sure, they wouldn't be able to leave the underground to find the red trees to impress their parents, but by then they'd found people who accepted them. Living underground would make Frisk the happiest they'd ever been.

Just as they were about to give the sandwich to Asgore, however, a loud buzzing filled the air. Small, white spheres had appeared surrounding him, and Frisk immediately knew what they were.

Friendliness Pellets, the very same attack that had first been used against them at the beginning of their adventure.

Within seconds the projectiles had closed in and struck the fallen King, finishing him off for good. The look of horror on his face only lasted a moment before his entire body turned to dust before Frisk's eyes. Asgore's frail white soul hovered in the air, but a stray pellet made short work of it. The heart shattered into pieces and disappeared.

"No… no, no no no NO!" they shouted at the top of their lungs.

"Hee hee hee…"

From the ground in front of them, Flowey the Flower emerged with a victorious sneer on his face. Worse still, the six human souls were no longer in their containers but were now hovering in a circle around him.

"You… IDIOT," he snickered. "You had the chance to get out of here once and for all, and you blew it. You haven't learned a thing, have you? Remember what I said? In this world…"

Flowey's expression began to morph into a horrifyingly twisted smile. He was shrieking with laughter.

 ** _"IT'S KILL OR BE KILLED!"  
_**

The human souls closed in around him, being absorbed by the demented flower. A blinding light flashed outwards, then everything went dark.


	48. Prologue: ?

Prologue: Once Upon A Time

If there was one thing that humans could almost universally agree on, it was a simple warning: "Stay away from Mount Ebott."

But they didn't, because they were all stupid like that.

Located in the northern wildlands of the largest kingdom on the planet, it towered above the surrounding areas and seemed to gaze down at the kingdom below. To the casual observer, it wasn't worth noting much. Unusual height aside, Ebott had no distinct physical features. Numerous outcroppings and steep paths lined the slopes of the mountain, with trees practically covering every other surface. There was no snow-capped peak, no sharp spire at the top with ominous storm clouds, not even an unusual mist floating through the air to signify that something was dangerous about it.

Talk about a boring look. Why would anyone be interested in what was going on there?

The prospect of venturing up Ebott was popularly discussed among children who were either curious as to what could be found there or daring each other to step foot on the base of the landmass. Too bad the little cowards never had the guts to actually try climbing it. Sometimes, adults would discuss the mysterious place with each other as well when not otherwise occupied with their boring, sad, predictable lives. Many of them could be just as easily excited by the secrecy of it all as those younger than them, the lowly imbeciles, and countless rumors of what Ebott held floated around the kingdom. Traversing the mountain was ostensibly banned by the government, but as the laws prohibiting its exploration were hardly upheld, it was in essence public property. And yet, very few citizens living near Ebott would ever dare to seriously consider having a look for themselves.

Good riddance, I say, they'd all just be annoyances.

Put simply, the reasoning for this was the legend surrounding the mountain. Those who had been exiled from the kingdom of men, so it was said, relocated to the sprawling caves beneath the earth through Mount Ebott and spent the rest of their days there wallowing in the kind of lifeless, uninteresting trance that could only befit people of their worth in life: that is to say, none at all. Terrified locals believed that to this day, the vengeful spirits of the "underlanders" were still down there, sealed away by a magical barrier but ready and willing to prey on those unlucky- or foolish- enough to enter their domain. Indeed, several people had already scaled the mountain and were never heard from again, their souls presumably devoured by the guardians of Ebott. Serves them right, the morons.

Had you asked a knowledgeable enough historian, or perhaps an open-minded politician of the day (you trust them all, don't you? Good little sheep), about the validity of such rumors, he or she would likely describe them as being "not untrue."

In actuality, the residents of Mount Ebott's caves were said to be not humans but monsters, a species of bizarre creatures mostly comprised of magic energy and possessing various powers, but all pathetically weak regardless. These beings had once ruled the earth alongside humans but were eventually seen as too dangerous to be allowed to remain with them. A great war broke out, ending with human victory and the monsters being trapped underground. Despite the fear of retaliation from whatever still remained there, every so often someone was curious enough to venture up the slopes of Mount Ebott. I hope their idiocy resulted in slow, painful deaths.

And so the story begins with a human child having finally reached the peak to explore. This is going to be very fun indeed.

 _ **WELCOME TO MY WORLD.**_


	49. Chapter 47: Happily Ever After

Chapter 47: Happily Ever After

 _ **Chapter 47: Your Best Nightmare**_

When Frisk regained consciousness, they momentarily thought that they'd gone blind. They were sitting in a void of absolute blackness. The floor, walls, ceiling, even the Barrier they'd just been in front of was gone. Calling upon their soul, the child was informed that their Save File had been deleted, and they were now stuck somewhere only called "My World." To make matters worse, their inventory was gone. Their bag and all of the items within, as well as most of their weapons and armor, had vanished. All Frisk had left was the rusty dagger and the heart-shaped locket they'd just found in Asgore's house, still around their neck. Loud cackling echoed from everywhere around the human. They couldn't discern its source until what looked like a gigantic screen activated in front of them, displaying Flowey's face. It flickered with static.

"Howdy, human! It's me, Flowey. Flowey the Flower!" he said cheerfully, but in a distorted and hissing voice.

"You! Where am I?!"

"I owe you a HUGE thanks," Flowey responded, not listening to them. "You really did a number on that old fool. Without you, I never could've gotten past him! But now, thanks to your help… he's ** _DEAD_**."

His face partially melted and reformed into a skull bearing a disturbing resemblance to Asgore.

"And I've got the human souls! Do ya like what I've done with your Save File? It's just you and me now, kiddo."

Flowey gave a shuddering laugh, smiling twistedly.

"Mmm, I've been empty for so long! It feels GREAT to have a soul again!"

"You… you mean you're soulless?"

"I was, but not anymore! Now I have SIX souls at my command! Their combined Determination let me take back control of this timeline from you! Hee hee hee… **_I can feel them wriggling inside me_**."

Frisk clutched the rusty dagger, not sure what to do.

"Aww, are you feeling left out? That's just perfect! I only need one more to destroy the Barrier… and then I can become GOD. Then, with my infinite powers…"

His face changed to look like Toriel, then like Frisk, then became shrouded in darkness.

"Monsters… humans… EVERYONE… _**I'll show them all the REAL meaning of this world.**_ "

Flowey's expression returned to normal, and he laughed a bit more.

"Oh, and forget about escaping to your old Save File. It's mine now, and it's gone forever! But don't worry, your old friend Flowey has worked out a replacement for you!"

He leered down at them.

"I'll Save over your own death and keep reloading it, so you can watch me tear you to bloody pieces _over,_ and **_over,_** and _**OVER…**_ "

"Not if I have anything to say about it."

Frisk had heard enough. They took a step toward Flowey and held up their knife. He just smiled.

"…what? Do you really think you can stop me?"

"I know I can!"

"Hee hee hee hee… _**you really**_ **are** _ **an idiot**_."

Frisk's soul emerged and shone brightly in the darkness. Meanwhile, Flowey's six souls appeared in a hexagon around him. The screen showing his face turned off, and a bright flash illuminated the room…

…revealing the single most horrifying sight Frisk had ever seen in their life.

They were staring at a gargantuan hybrid of plants and machinery that had to be at least thirty feet tall. Flowey's new body- called "Omega Flowey" according to their soul- was centrally composed of a pink bulb with large, razor-sharp jaws. The bulb had four pairs of eyes that all glowered at Frisk with murderous intent. A long series of metal pipes and wires formed a flower shape behind it with six petals, each glowing the color of one of the human souls. Both sides of the flower featured massive green vines with red thorns that looked like they could easily impale Frisk if they got too close, and a pair of stemlike arms hung down below the flower part, laden with more thorns and ivy. Three claws sprouted from the end of his arms. Behind the main body was a system of dozens of cables that held him together. The screen they'd seen his face on was mounted on the top of the pink bulb, displaying a visage that didn't resemble him in the slightest. A pair of red eyes and a psychopathic smile completed his monstrous appearance.

Omega Flowey opened the jaws on his bulb's center and emitted a high-pitched, screeching laugh as the battle began. He immediately fired hundreds of Friendliness Pellets- each the size of Frisk- out of his lower pair of eyes. The human was caught off guard and promptly torn to shreds by the devastating attack, their soul completely shattering. It was an unbearably painful experience. However, they simply reappeared in front of their six-souled enemy with full health. He cackled maniacally, having loaded his own Save File to bring them back.

 _ **"Aw, what's the matter?! Did that HURT? It's gonna hurt a whole lot more now!"**_

Frisk was ready for the next wave of giant Friendliness Pellets, cutting through some of them with their knife while just dodging others outright. The next attack came immediately as a pair of flamethrowers appeared beneath his arms. Scorching jets of fire were blasted at Frisk, who managed to get out of the way by some miracle. Dozens of tiny vines, each covered in thorns, shot out of Omega Flowey's arms, seriously cutting them and lowering their HP by a large amount. They had gotten close to one of the arms, however, and drove the blade of the knife into it. Considering his sheer size, Frisk might as well have tried spitting on him for all the impact it had.

"AHAHAHAHA! Wanna say hi to another human?!" he shrieked.

The screen on top of Omega Flowey flashed an image of the light blue and orange souls, then whole body suddenly disappeared. Frisk was left alone with a disembodied blue heart, which hovered in the air before them. A shadowy outline formed around it in the shape of a person, specifically a girl about Frisk's height. They couldn't make out any physical details save for three glowing objects: her soul, a ribbon in her hair, and a toy knife clutched in her hand. She was wielding their items.

 _"Though, I guess they were her items first…"_

Frisk was interrupted when Soul of Patience (as their own called her) ran straight at them, wildly swinging the toy knife. Knowing that it was imbued with magic, they definitely didn't want to let it contact them. They brought up the rusty dagger and blocked Soul of Patience's strike.

"Why are you still holding on?" she asked in a youthful but hollow voice. "Flowey's won, there's nothing you can do…"

Taking a step back, Frisk got out of the way of another slash from her knife.

"You can't give up that easily! There's gotta be a way to win, I just know it!"

"You know nothing… not even my big brother thinks there's any hope left. Soon you'll realize it too."

Soul of Patience stabbed at Frisk, who swiftly dodged to the side.

"What's your brother like?"

She paused her attacks.

"He has an orange soul… we fell into the mountain together, and he took good care of me. Miss Toriel didn't want us to leave the Ruins, we should've listened to her… look at where we are now."

Frisk blocked another slash.

"Would he tell you to give up?"

"He'd… he'd tell me… no, this isn't right…"

Soul of Patience was starting to shake.

"Why am I doing this? I can't hurt another person… my brother wouldn't want it. I'm so sorry, friend. I won't fight you anymore."

She dropped her knife, waving to Frisk before her shadowy figure dissipated. Her soul faded away, too, only to be replaced by the orange one right after. It formed a silhouette body just like its predecessor, this time taking on the shape of a teenage boy wearing the Manly Bandana and the tough glove, ready to begin punching. He was called Soul of Bravery.

"You can't win," he said angrily. "Just make this easy for yourself and give up."

The soul projection moved faster than anticipated, throwing a right hook punch that connected with the side of Frisk's head. They stumbled and fell to the ground.

"You're skilled to have made it this far, but what chance do you think you have against Flowey? You'll never amount to anything, just like all of us… all we can do is pretend to be strong, and hope that nobody will realize we're full of crap."

He swung his fist down at the fallen child, but they rolled aside and kicked out Soul of Bravery's semi-solid legs from under him. The ghostly figure collapsed, giving Frisk a chance to get back on their feet.

"Ugh… you don't think I know what it's like? I had to protect my sister throughout our trip across the underground. The whole time, I had to be strong for her… in fact, I was just scared for our lives. But I couldn't let that show. Imagine how much of a disappointment I'd be if she found out…"

"I don't think your sister would be mad," Frisk replied. "I actually just talked to her, and she's really happy you were with her until the end! And I'm not going to lose, no matter what."

"What? That can't be right… there's no way… do you really think you'll be able to win against that flower?"

They nodded.

"I've come so far, I'm not gonna give up now."

Soul of Bravery sounded like he was quietly laughing. He lowered his fists, having lost the desire to fight. Soul of Patience appeared beside him and gave her brother a hug.

"This one will succeed where we failed."

"I think I can believe you… we were apparently the first two humans to fall underground after that Chara person, you know. I hope the other four can be talked out of fighting as well. Good luck, kid. We're counting on you to beat Flowey."

The two souls glowed softly, and Frisk's health was fully restored. Within a few seconds they had both disappeared, and Omega Flowey returned with a glare on his screen's face. They noticed that two of his six "petals," which had previously been flashing light blue and orange, had faded until they were a dull gray color.

"Grr… _**very clever, human.**_ But you're not going to win!"

The mouth on his bulb opened and released an enormous blue laser which nearly fried the human to a crisp. They'd gotten out of the way just in time and delivered another stab to one of Omega Flowey's giant arms. Frisk succeeded in carving off a thorn this time, but still had little effect on him as a whole. He hissed in annoyance and swatted them away, then opened a pair of Venus flytrap mouths on his vines. Gigantic flies swarmed around Frisk, stinging and biting until their soul had run out of HP. They feebly cried as their second death of the battle came, but were once again brought back to life as Omega Flowey used his control over time manipulation.

"That's what you get! Having fun?! You're gonna die again and again and again at my hands!"

"I don't care how many times you kill me!" Frisk shouted, trying to ignore the pain they'd just felt. "I'll beat you regardless of the cost!"

"Hee hee… _**don't hold that promise too close to heart!"**_

Flowey's screen showed them another pair of souls, a darker blue and purple. Like before, his body faded away and left behind the blue one first: Soul of Integrity. She was a fully-grown woman, judging by the size and shape of her dark projected body, and wore the tutu and ballet shoes.

"Naïve child…" she said in a voice not unlike Toriel's, but with an accent they weren't familiar with. "You need to be taught a lesson on how important we really are in the grand scheme of things."

As she closed in, twirling on the points of her toes, Soul of Integrity spun and threw a straight kick at them. Frisk ducked under the attack, trying to move to a saver distance. However, she was relentless in her pursuit.

"No matter what you do, you'll never be recognized. Fame will forever elude your grasp, just like it did for mine… and when you die, nobody will remember you. All our lives are worthless in the end…"

By that point, they could tell that Flowey was feeding on the inner turmoil of the souls. That would have to be used against him.

"Well… is being famous really the most important thing? Getting recognition is nice, sure, but doesn't it make you feel good to do something kind for someone and see the smile on their face?"

"What difference does it make? We'll all die, and that smile will mean nothing. The friendships we form… pointless when all is done."

"Don't think of it like that! When you make friends, you get to…"

They reflected on the journey that had led to that point, avoiding another kick.

"…you get to learn more about yourself, and about everyone around you. You get to laugh with them, and enjoy their company, and do things you've never done before. Even if it won't last forever, that can't stop you from enjoying it in the present, right?"

Soul of Integrity's movements slowed down.

"I… I never had many friends growing up… has my life been wasted in my search for fame? Am I beyond redemption?"

"No, I don't think you are. Right now, the fate of the whole world is on my shoulders. I could use someone to help carry it."

"…a chance to do some good at last. Very well. I shall not harm you, little one. Show that flower the strength of someone as determined as you are."

She gave them a curtsey and disappeared. In her place, the purple soul took form, armed with the torn notebook and wearing the pair of glasses. It too was a young adult woman. Frisk's soul identified her, but they already knew who it was: Abigail, the Soul of Perseverance. Her book fired magic blasts shaped like various negative words: "Doom," "Hatred," "Death," "Horror," "Murder," and the like.

"Children like you have such high expectations for life. I was like you at one time… and I was wrong."

Her voice was indeed scholarly to some degree. She spoke with crisp enunciations and no hints of slurred speech.

"I know what it's like to set goals. I know what it's like to feel motivated to succeed. I also know that if you try to accomplish your aspirations… you will only ever be disappointed. There is no sense in persevering with such oppression in your way."

"You wanted to be an author, didn't you Abigail?" Frisk asked between dodging her magic attacks.

"How… how do you know that? Or my name?"

"I, uh, read your book. I even kept it with me 'cause I didn't want to lose something that had belonged to another human… I'm sorry if you wanted it to be private."

Soul of Perseverance shifted uncomfortably on her feet.

"Nobody has ever actually read my work before… i-is it good?"

They held up a thumb.

"I liked it! It was pretty cool to hear about what you'd done underground. Hey, once I beat Flowey… do you think I could maybe ask you more about it?"

She rubbed the back of her shadowy, projected head.

"I… succeeded? I managed to find someone who likes my writing? Hm… if you can truly defeat him, then hopefully we may get to see each other one last time. Persevere for both of us, won't you?"

"I will, Abigail."

Soul of Perseverance turned a few pages in her notebook, looking to the side as Soul of Integrity materialized. The two stared down at Frisk.

"You're injured? Perhaps we can help you somehow," the latter said. "Unfortunately, all I can do is sing and dance."

"My notebook is imbued with magic, why not try singing this poem I wrote? It may heal them."

"I will do my best. Ahem… _though the path ahead is treacherous, and the foes I face are dangerous, nothing will stop me here. I will succeed, I will be freed, I will not submit to fear."_

Frisk wasn't familiar with the tune Soul of Integrity was singing to, but that didn't matter. They felt a wave of calmness wash over them from her lovely voice, and their HP was replenished.

"Thank you. I feel better already."

"Your story will be remembered throughout monster history, I can tell," Abigail's soul projection said. "Never give up!"

With that, they disappeared from view. Frisk was growing more confident in themselves as Omega Flowey began to attack again. He dropped dozens of bombs from above, managing to kill and revive them two additional times, but they bore the pain and suffering without losing hope. They couldn't afford to give up; everyone was counting on them. Frisk smiled upon realizing that his dark blue and purple petals had stopped glowing as well. The monstrous plant-machine hybrid used his flamethrowers, the giant Friendliness Pellets, and the bulb's laser to attack over and over again, but they never let themselves be discouraged. Their knife still barely damaged him at all, yet with each soul's power that Omega Flowey lost his defense seemed to decrease a bit. No matter how long it would take to hack his giant body to pieces, Frisk was determined to see the fight through to the end.

"You're resilient, y'know that? What's it gonna take for me to stomp you down once and for all?!"

He used more of the small, thorny vines to try and whip at Frisk, but they just sliced through them with the rusty dagger. Omega Flowey hissed angrily and changed his screen to display the final two souls. Green, the Soul of Kindness, was first to attack, armed with the frying pan and wearing the apron from Hotland. His body shape was that of a middle-aged man.

"I admire your courage, kid, but this isn't going to end well for you."

"That's what everyone else said, and I'm still here."

Soul of Kindness swung the frying pan, releasing a stream of fireballs. Frisk sustained multiple injuries from them but stood strong.

"Can't you see? Flowey has control over time and space now… what can you hope to do against that kind of power? I have to stop you here, before you suffer too much from him. It's so sad… you had your whole life ahead of you, too…"

"As long as I don't give up, I haven't lost yet. I can tell you don't really wanna fight me, which is good because I don't wanna fight you either!"

They sidestepped to avoid another fiery blast from his frying pan.

"Come on, don't you think he should be stopped too? Let me pass, and I can save the underground AND the human world!"

Soul of Kindness appeared to be thinking about something.

"You know… I never really saw the underground. I think I died right after leaving the Ruins, but I don't know what killed me. What could possibly be worth all the danger there, though?"

They figured he had been that soul that was found just sitting in Snowdin forest, according to Undyne. As much as Frisk hated to admit it, what had most likely happened was he took a few steps out the door of the Ruins and was abruptly struck down by Sans. That, in turn, led them to wonder how strong the skeleton really was.

"Well, I've been through the whole Monster Kingdom, and I know that these people are worth saving. They're the best friends I've ever had."

"Really? I don't know what you can do against Flowey, but… I'll take your word for it. I'll stop fighting now. You sure you'll be okay?"

Inwardly, they weren't entirely convinced that they really could win, but Frisk certainly wasn't about to give up.

"Yes, I will. There's only one soul left to convince now."

Soul of Kindness nodded and faded away. They knew what was coming: the yellow one. Their own soul referred to it as Soul of Justice. Its shadowy figure was that of a much more elderly man, wearing the cowboy hat and holding the revolver in his hands.

"This ends here! What do ya think is gonna happen, huh? Think you'll be able to take down Flowey by yerself?!"

"Of course not! I need your help!"

"Yer either real brave or real dumb, and I'm guessin' it's just dumb."

They received a shot to the shoulder and loudly cried in pain. Smoke poured from the barrel of Soul of Justice's gun.

"P-please… don't let him t-take your hope away…"

"Tch. You youngsters never learn. Always tryin' ta prove yer own strength, but never knowin' when to quit. Now look at yerself, kid. This is way beyond you."

He raised the gun and took aim again. Frisk clumsily rolled out of the way as he fired another shot.

"Face the facts! You've lost! We've all lost!"

"What… what did you do before you died?"

Soul of Justice seemed to have been caught off-guard by the question.

"Eh? I was a sheriff in the city. Went to investigate some missin' folks near Mount Ebott and decided ta climb it. See what was there and all…"

"You must've heard the rumors about people who disappeared, right? But you climbed anyway?"

"'Course I did. It was the right thing ta do, and I don't regret anythin.' Why'd ya ask?"

Frisk gave a pained smile, ignoring their shoulder (which was in agony from the bullet they'd just received).

"Like you just said… doing the right thing, even when the odds are against you. Can't you see that's what I'm trying to do now? I don't care how strong he is, all my friends are counting on me to beat him."

Soul of Justice was silent momentarily. He then started to laugh.

"Well, I'll be… seems like this old man's had the wrong idea about ya. Fine, ya might have a fightin' chance after all, kid."

He removed his cowboy hat, holding it in front of him respectfully.

"Y'know, ya kinda remind me of my daughter. She passed on when she was little, caught a bad fever… but I think you two would've got along swell."

Soul of Kindness appeared beside him.

"You have my support, kid. Take care of yourself."

"Don't let us down now! Or I won't let ya hear the end of it!"

The two souls emanated a healing aura just like the other four, and Frisk was back at their full health. When Omega Flowey returned, they gave him a grin. All six of his petals had stopped flashing, indicating that the souls were no longer giving him power.

"What…? No! This isn't possible! How could you… you…"

He was visibly panicking now. At least, he was until his expression suddenly changed to a smirk.

 _ **"How could you be such a MORON?!"**_

Omega Flowey's six petals were suddenly all glowing again. Frisk's heart sank tremendously when they realized that he'd rewound time for himself so the souls were still giving him power. He promptly opened his bulb's mouth and vaporized Frisk with another laser, then restored their life and used thorny vines to rip them apart, then brought them back to incinerate them with his flamethrowers, then have them get stung to death by insects, then get obliterated by his bombs. Omega Flowey rapidly repeated the cycle of death and restoration about fifty times in quick succession to put them through as much pain as he could. By the end of it, Frisk had dropped to their knees and was gasping in terror after being revived. A circle of giant Friendliness Pellets formed around them. They were at 1/20 HP remaining.

"Hee hee hee… didn't I say you couldn't beat me?! I am the god of this world, and you? You're HOPELESS. Golly, that's right! You're all alone now! Your worthless friends aren't here to save you this time. Go on, cry into the darkness. I dare you. 'Mommy! Daddy! Somebody help me!' _**SEE WHAT GOOD IT DOES YOU!"**_

He was waiting for them to respond. Frisk, unable to think of anything else to do, complied.

"S-someone… please… help me! I don't want to be all alone here! HELP!" they sobbed.

A few seconds passed between them without a sound. Omega Flowey chuckled.

"But nobody came… boy, isn't that a shame? Nobody else… _**is gonna get to see you DIE!**_ "

The Friendliness Pellets closed in on Frisk, aimed squarely at their soul. It was just like the beginning of their adventure, when Flowey had first ambushed them. They closed their eyes and waited for the end. Toriel, Sans, Papyrus, Kid, Napstablook, Mettaton, Undyne, Alphys, even Asgore… Frisk had failed them all.

Surprisingly, though, they didn't die. Upon hitting their body, the Friendliness Pellets had simply vanished into thin air. To make matters more confusing, their HP had been fully restored yet again.

"…huh? How did you… well, it doesn't matter, I'll just…"

Omega Flowey looked appalled when he tried to load his Save File, but nothing happened.

"Where are my powers?!"

Light flashed through the room, and suddenly the six human souls were floating in front of him in their shadow-like replicas of their old bodies. Frisk stared in amazement as they began emitting brilliant colored auras that caused multiple parts of Omega Flowey's body to spark and wither, even bursting into flames in some areas.

"H-huh?! The souls?! What are you doing?! No, no, no, YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO OBEY ME! STOP! STOP IT! STOOOOOOOOP!"

With him distracted, the souls all turned to look at Frisk.

"You've brought us back to reason, so we're going to return the favor," Integrity explained.

"Yeah, we'd have been lost forever if he stayed in control!" added Bravery.

His sister, Patience, gave them two thumbs up. "Let's teach him a lesson!"

Perseverance flipped through her notebook. "I have some very special things I'd like to tell that flower…"

"Now we'll taste delicious victory together!" Kindness cheered.

Justice already had his pistol aimed. "His defense is gone! Attack, Soul of Determination! We're right here with ya!"

The rest of the souls got their weapons out as Omega Flowey recovered from their initial attack.

 _ **"Y-you… I'LL TEAR YOU ALL TO SHREDS!"**_

He unleashed his most desperate arrangement of attacks yet. Friendliness Pellets, jets of fire, killer insects, thorny vines, bombs, lasers, and even giant clusters of leaves that spun like sawblades all filled the air, but Frisk and the six human souls were coordinated. They covered each other's backs, disrupting or outright deflecting Omega Flowey's countless projectiles. In the lulls between his attacks the seven would swarm his body, dealing precise strikes to the joints and cables holding it together. His arms barely lasted any time at all before they were snapped off and collapsed to the ground, soon followed by the vines and flamethrowers. His central bulb tried to launch more Friendliness Pellets, but was interrupted when Frisk carved a huge chunk of its jaws off with the rusty dagger. Omega Flowey screamed as the humans finally succeeded in destroying the screen atop his body, and multiple explosions were triggered across his flower-shaped center. The entire mechanism sagged and broke down in a sparking, flaming heap. Within seconds, it began turning to dust.

It was over. They had won.


	50. Chapter 48: An Ending

Chapter 48: An Ending

The souls all cheered triumphantly and put their weapons away, but Frisk had their gaze fixed on the vanishing remains of Omega Flowey. Once it had fully disappeared, all that was left was a single golden flower- his original form- drooping over and heavily damaged.

Soul of Bravery pointed at Flowey.

"There he is… he's helpless now."

"Serves him right," Soul of Perseverance said. "Let's finish him off!"

"I dunno… do you really think he's still a threat?" asked Soul of Kindness.

"Yer not really thinkin' of showin' him mercy, are ya?"

"Everyone, hold on just a moment," Soul of Integrity cut in. "We've all done marvelously, but remember that this isn't our fight. It belongs to Soul of Determination, so I say they should decide what we do."

Soul of Patience nodded. "Makes sense to me!"

The others were gradually convinced to agree as well. They all turned to Frisk, awaiting their choice. Inwardly, the child was also wondering what should be done with Flowey. He was a menace, no doubt, but he'd been defeated and was now at their mercy. And they'd gone through the entire underground having only killed two people, even then just resetting to spare them instead. Frisk had proved Flowey wrong; life didn't just come down to "kill or be killed."

"What are you doing…?" the flower groaned from where he sat drooping. "Do you think I've learned anything from this? No."

"I've decided," they said to the human souls, who watched eagerly. "I'm not going to kill him."

Clearly, not all of them agreed with that choice, but none of them said a word.

"Sparing me won't change anything, you idiot. The only way to end this is to kill me."

"No it isn't. The souls are on my side now."

"That's right," Soul of Perseverance said. "Together, we can restore the timeline to Soul of Determination's control."

Flowey struggled to pull himself upright, staring them down with a cracked and demented smile.

"If you let me live… I'll come back. I'll kill you… I'll kill everyone. _**I'll kill everyone you love.**_ "

"No you won't," Frisk replied calmly. "That's an empty threat as long as I can still control the Save File. I don't want to kill you, even after everything you've done."

Flowey glared at them, but his face soon became upset and confused.

"…why? Why are you being… s-so nice to me?"

"No need to add more violence to the world."

"I… I can't understand. I can't understand!"

"You don't have to. Just know that I'm not going to kill you."

"…I just can't understand…"

With that, Flowey burrowed underground and was out of sight. Where he could possibly go in that empty black void, Frisk didn't know, but that didn't concern them now.

"Excuse me, Soul of Determination, but didn't you say you had a question about my journal?"

"Oh, that's right. I completely forgot."

Frisk tried to remember what they'd been confused by in Abigail's story. Only one question came to mind.

"You met Doctor W.D. Gaster, right? What was he like? I haven't heard much about him other than his name."

Soul of Perseverance nodded.

"Yes, him… he was a peculiar monster, but a true genius. He didn't want to fight me, you know. Instead he was more concerned with the creation of his 'son,' as he said. I must say, I've forgotten what his name was going to be…"

"What about Gaster himself? What did he sound like? What kind of monster was he?"

"I was getting to that. He first tried communicating in some kind of sign language, one that I didn't recognize. After that became clear to him, he spoke normally. Even then, though, I occasionally had trouble understanding him. I cannot say for certain, but… I think he was a skeleton."

For some reason, they were pleasantly surprised to hear that there had been another skeletal monster. Frisk wondered if Sans and Papyrus knew about him.

"You say you only heard his name? Has something happened to him?"

"Yeah, he disappeared about 20 years ago. Nobody knows where he is."

"That's a shame…" Soul of Perseverance sighed. "I hope he's okay."

Soul of Justice spoke up.

"I think we've waited long enough. Time to restore the Save File fer Soul of Determination."

They suddenly had an idea.

"Wait a second! There's seven of us, right? Can't we all break the Barrier together and free everyone?"

The souls looked between each other uncomfortably for a few seconds. It was Integrity that responded.

"No… I am sorry, child, but we are not strong enough to restore the Save File and destroy the Barrier. Without host bodies, our souls shall fade away soon… and humans cannot absorb human souls."

Frisk was crushed by that response. Soul of Kindness sighed and gestured to the others.

"The most we can do is restore the world as it was, but alter it just enough to move you past the Barrier."

"…okay…"

"I'm glad we could meet you before the end," Soul of Perseverance said comfortingly. "The surface world awaits you."

"Take care!" added Soul of Patience.

"Ready, everyone?" Soul of Bravery asked. "Focus your strength!"

The six souls emitted a shockwave of multicolored energy, making the world go dark again. Frisk hadn't expected the recreation of time and space to not feel like anything, as they just found themselves floating through emptiness for a few seconds before feeling solid ground beneath their feet again. Their bag of items was back as well.

Looking around, Frisk noticed that they were in a cave exactly like the one they'd first met Flowey in, save for one difference. A large, white, translucent screen shimmered behind them. Their soul appeared and pointed out that what they were looking at was the Barrier. From the outside, it said, one could fully see through it.

From the outside. They took a moment to let that sink in. Frisk had made it out of the Monster Kingdom at last.

Their phone was sitting on the ground just beyond the Barrier, having apparently fallen out of their pocket during the fight with Asgore. It started ringing.

Frisk reached out to pick it up, but paused just before their arm touched the Barrier. It could be freely entered through, but not exited through without a human and a monster soul. Their entire journey had been for the sake of escaping, and yet at the end they'd decided not to leave. But now, King Asgore was gone. If they went back through the Barrier, and trapped themselves again… he'd have died for nothing. Frisk just listened as the person calling began to leave a message.

"heya," Sans' voice said. "is anyone there…? well, i'll just leave a message."

They desperately wanted to be able to speak to him, to see their friends again, but the phone was out of their reach.

"so… it's been a while. a week since you made it to asgore, actually."

Frisk could only guess that the souls, having put so much energy into restoring the world, couldn't be as accurate with the passage of time. It felt like no time had passed for them, but for the monsters- their friends- trapped in the Barrier, it had been several days.

"guess i'll tell ya how we've been doing. the queen returned a few days ago, and is now ruling over the underground. she's instated a new policy: all the humans who fall down here will be treated not as enemies, but as friends."

That brought some relief to Frisk. At least now, if anyone else were to fall from Mount Ebott, the monsters wouldn't be hostile. They were also pleased to hear that the mysterious runaway Queen had come back.

"it's probably for the best, anyway… the human souls asgore gathered seem to have disappeared. so, uh, that plan ain't happening any time soon. but even though people are heartbroken over the death of the king, and things are looking pretty grim for our freedom… the queen's trying her best to not let us give up hope. so, hey… if we're not giving up down here, don't give up wherever you are, okay?"

"…o-okay…" Frisk croaked out in a shaky voice, knowing that Sans wouldn't be able to hear them regardless. They'd left their friends behind, and with a massive hole in their confidence.

"who knows how long it will take to reach the surface… but we will get out of here. that's a promise."

"SANS!" his brother's voice exclaimed through the receiver. "WHO ARE YOU TALKING TO?"

"eh, nobody."

The human was trembling with sadness by then, struggling to stay composed.

"NOBODY? CAN I TALK TO THEM TOO?"

"sure, knock yourself out."

"WAIT A SECOND… I RECOGNIZE THIS NUMBER!"

Papyrus was speaking in a highly excited voice.

"ATTENTION, FRISK! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS… HAVE BECOME CAPTAIN OF THE ROYAL GUARD! IT'S EVERYTHING I'VE EVER DREAMED OF!"

Frisk couldn't hold back the teary-eyed smile plastered across their face. They'd feared that Papyrus would be devastated at their departure and the death of Asgore, but it sounded like he was doing very well.

"EXCEPT… INSTEAD OF FIGHTING, WE JUST WATER FLOWERS AND DO OTHER GARDENING - RELATED ACTIVITIES. SO THAT'S EVER SO SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT. WE'RE ALSO HELPING DOCTOR ALPHYS WITH HER RESEARCH! SHE'S GONNA FIND A WAY TO GET US OUT OF HERE!"

So they weren't completely without hope… Frisk wiped at their eyes, still trying not to break down. They had to focus on everything their friends were saying, now more than ever.

"UNDYNE IS HELPING HER TOO, THOUGH… TO BE HONEST, HER METHODS ARE RATHER… EXPLOSION – INDUCING. BUT I THINK ALPHYS LIKES HAVING HER AROUND. UH – OH…"

There was a brief scuffle on the other side of the call. It sounded like someone had just grabbed the phone out of Papyrus' hands.

"HEY!" Undyne shouted. "What're you up to, punk?! Ngahhh!"

"PLEASE DON'T NOOGIE THE PHONE."

She barked back at him.

"Hey, who's in charge here?!"

"ME."

"Oh yeah, that's right. I quit being the leader of the Royal Guard. Actually, since we're not fighting humans anymore… the Guard completely disbanded. There's, um, only one member now."

"BUT HE'S EXTREMELY GOOD AT HIS JOB!"

"Yeah, he is! C'mere, you!"

"ACK- PLEASE DON'T NOOGIE THE SKELETON!"

Frisk was laughing in between wiping their eyes. After the encounter with Flowey, it felt wonderful just to hear the voices of their friends again.

"So anyway, now I'm working as Alphys' lab assistant. We're gonna find a way outta this dump once and for all. Oh yeah, and I'm a gym teacher at the Queen's new school! Did you know I can bench-press SEVEN CHILDREN?! Awesome, right?"

"It is…" they replied again, though they couldn't be heard.

Undyne's tone became quite somber.

"Hey… I'm sorry about what happened with Asgore. You were just doing what you had to, it's not your fault… darn it, I miss the big guy."

As if they weren't already feeling miserable, Frisk's sense of guilt was only hammered in harder.

"Aw, come on Undyne!" she said to herself. "Snap out of it! Uh, I guess I'll tell you how Alphys is doing. She's… well, she's the same as normal. Maybe even more reclusive, though… seems like something's really bothering her…"

They sincerely hoped that she wasn't still beating herself up for lying.

"B-but she can get through it! I'm there supporting her! That's what friends are for, right?"

 _"I never should have left…"_

"Oh, did you wanna talk?" Undyne said to someone. "Here, take the phone."

 **"Hello there, darling!"** It was Mettaton. **"Our show was a smash hit across the kingdom! I can't thank you enough for helping me. I just know you'll do great things on the surface world, and I do hope you'll remember us once we escape! We're all looking forward to seeing you again!"**

Frisk knew that there was no chance they wouldn't remember the monsters. Their whole body was shaking as the tears began to fall.

 **"I must say, you've made quite an impression on us. You've got your own fan club now! It rivals even mine in number of members… that's something to be proud of. I wish I could say more, but I have another show to shoot soon. Give us a call back sometime, won't you? Ta-ta for now, darling!"**

"OH, FRISK! THERE'S SOMEONE ELSE HERE WHO WANTS TO SAY HI."

They listened closer. A scratchy, juvenile voice suddenly spoke into the phone.

"Yo! You really did it! You got back to the surface!"

"Kid…"

"Man, the UnderNet's been blowing up about you! Now all sorts of people have been asking us what it's like to have known the human who got all the way through the underground!"

He was giggling to himself as he spoke. In spite of their friends' praise, all they could think about was what they'd left behind.

"Yo… it's great that you made it out, but… man, it really sucks that you're gone."

"I know, I feel the same way."

"But hey, it's cool! All the more reason for us to escape, so we can hang out again! I can't wait to see what kind of great human stuff's on the surface!"

Frisk nodded their head desperately, wanting to see him again.

"Well, I gotta run. See ya around, Frisk!"

Undyne took the phone back.

"By the way… wherever you are, I hope it's better than down here. It took a big sacrifice for you to escape, so… you have to try to be happy, okay? For our sakes! We'll feel better knowing our trouble was worth it. Everyone here is wishing you luck, even the Queen!"

She paused.

"Wait a second… hey, Toriel! Toriel! Do you wanna… heh, she says she's busy."

"BUT IF SHE KNEW WHO WE WERE TALKING TO…"

"…we wouldn't get the phone back for at least a few hours," Sans finished.

"WE HAVE THE MERCY TO SPARE YOU FROM HER!"

Frisk was amazed that they hadn't put two and two together sooner. Toriel, the kindly goat woman who lived isolated from the Monster Kingdom, who had warned them about the dangers of Asgore… who was a Boss Monster just like him… she was the missing Queen. No wonder she was wearing the Delta Rune on her dress. It all seemed so obvious now.

"But still, call back any time! She'd love to talk!" Undyne said cheerfully.

"whoops, this thing's almost outta batteries. hate to cut this short, but… be seeing you, okay buddy?"

"BYE BYE FOR NOW!"

"See ya, punk!"

The call ended. Frisk dropped to their knees and let themselves cry at last. They cried for Asgore, for the Monster Kingdom, and for their friends. For about fifteen minutes they lay there on the other side of the Barrier, mourning the fact that they hadn't been able to properly say goodbye.

"I… I h-have to keep moving. I can't let this be in vain…"

Frisk got to their feet and turned their back on the Monster Kingdom at last, walking through the last tunnel. They were greeted by a blinding flash: sunlight. The mouth of the cave opened up to the side of Mount Ebott, and Frisk stood on the edge of a steep cliff. A winding path seemed to lead around the side of the mountain. Wind blew through their dirty brown hair, the warmth of the sun comforted their cold skin, and the freshness of the air was a welcome departure from the underground. They'd almost completely forgotten what it was like on the surface. A fantastic sensation… if only their friends were there to experience it with them.

Sighing, they turned to begin walking down the path. Somewhere along the way, the color red caught their attention. Frisk quickly realized what it was. A small group of trees stood tall right before their eyes, with leaves colored deep red in contrast to the verdant green all around them. The rumors had been true after all… their objective was ripe for the taking.

Frisk pulled out the rusty dagger and approached one of the lower-hanging branches. The magical weapon cut straight through it, letting it drop to the ground. They picked up the branch and stared at it. Such a simple thing… had their adventure's ultimate goal really just been for some red leaves to show their parents? They put the dagger away in their bag and began hiking down the mountain trail with the small branch tucked under their arm.

"There's… there's no way they'll think I'm a coward now."

The trip back down Mount Ebott lasted about two days. Frisk was able to last with the monster food they had left, of which there was just enough. At some point, they passed by a large hole in the ground. That was where they'd initially fallen, and the Ruins were just below.

"No going back, Frisk… just keep walking."

Once they'd reached the base of Mount Ebott, their next destination was home. The child marched onward to present proof of their travels. At last, their parents would see reason…


	51. Chapter 49: For Their Friends

Chapter 49: For Their Friends

 **Author's Note: Wow, almost at ten thousand views! Thanks for all the support so far, everyone! This chapter's pretty short, but there might be another one tomorrow.**

Frisk made it back to their home city after another day's walk. It felt oddly unfamiliar to them, like they'd never been there before. Despite having only been gone for a total of about ten days (by their perspective, as the human souls had fast-forwarded time by an additional week when remaking the Save File), the place no longer felt like somewhere they truly belonged.

Regardless, they clutched the red-leaved branch tightly and began navigating the busy streets. None of the countless people around them (even seeing other humans felt surreal) seemed to notice the small, dirty child stumbling among them. That, in hindsight, may have been beneficial to Frisk, but it just felt depressing after coming from a place where they were warmly accepted (with time and effort on their part, of course). They didn't reach their apartment building for another hour or so, and once they got there…

…they learned a horrible truth.

The building's owner recognized Frisk and was utterly shocked to see them. He was worried about where they'd disappeared to for over two weeks (to him, anyway), apparently more so than their own parents, who'd been imprisoned under charge of robbery and murder not even two days after they left to climb Mount Ebott. Frisk barely heard any details of the crime other than that, their shock was too overwhelming. Apparently, though, their parents' last known statement before being found guilty and sent off was something along the lines of never wanting to see their "disgraceful" child again, should they turn up. The owner of the apartment building draped a blanket over Frisk's shoulders and left to get them something hot to drink before he would arrange for somewhere for them to stay.

He needn't have bothered, though. Within ten minutes the child had fled to the far outskirts of the city, collapsing under a tree in a public park and screaming from the pain they were feeling inside. Their whole motivation for running away from home… their journey up the mountain… their fall into the Ruins… their friendship with Toriel, and the skeletons, and Kid, and Undyne, and Alphys, and Mettaton, and Napstablook… the death of Asgore, who wasn't even a bad person… the defeat of Flowey, and the alliance they'd had with the previous human souls… the continued hopes of monsterkind hanging by a thread… their escape from Mount Ebott…

All of it had been completely, devastatingly pointless. Frisk had failed.

"Hi," a soft voice said from behind them. Still loudly sobbing, they turned to face the speaker. It was none other than Flowey. He must have been moved outside the Barrier as well when the human souls restored the Save File. Frisk felt no fear at all upon seeing him, and the fact that they were probably going to be dead in a few seconds didn't bother them.

"…j-just do it… go ahead and kill me, I give up… you win."

The flower's expression was gentle. Not kind, but not murderous either.

"I'm not gonna kill you. I actually have a question."

He sighed deeply.

"Why? Why'd you let me go? Don't you realize that being nice just gets you hurt? You made all those great friends, and now… you'll probably never see them again."

"…"

"Not to mention how much they've been set back by you," Flowey continued. His expression was some kind of nervous smile. "Hurts, doesn't it? If you'd just gone through without caring about anyone… maybe you wouldn't have to feel bad now."

Frisk curled up into a ball.

"Maybe you're right…"

"On the other hand, though… would you give up those friends if you were able to?"

"Come on, Flowey, you know I'd never give them up. Have you ever had someone you cared about that much?"

He chuckled and stared at the ground.

"I… once, a long time ago… yeah, I did. But that time's gone now. I have no soul, I can't feel emotions like you can. How I feel doesn't matter anymore. Anyway, I don't get it. You went through without killing anyone, and even when you did you just reset to do it 'right.' Well… if you really DID do everything right, why did things turn out like this? Is life just that unfair?"

Neither of them said anything for a few minutes. After a while, Flowey awkwardly coughed and spoke up again.

"Hey… what if I told you… there was a way to get a better ending?"

Frisk looked down at him with puffy, red eyes.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, there might be a way for you to make things better for yourself and for the monsters. You're still in control of the Save File, you know… just reset to right before your battle against the King. Then… well, maybe you should give Doctor Alphys a visit. I feel like you two could've been better friends. Who knows… she might have the key to your happiness. But it's your choice, I guess. What happens now is up to you."

They were about to ask why he would offer them help, but Flowey had already burrowed back underground and was gone. Frisk took a minute to consider what he'd said.

"For my friends… I'll do whatever it takes to make them happy."

Their soul had appeared in front of them, shimmering with Determination. Frisk concentrated hard on it.

"I have to go back. Rewind time to the point before I had to fight Asgore."

The glowing red heart pulsed and emitted a flash as the world around Frisk disappeared, beginning the process of returning them to the underground. They wiped their tears away and smiled.

This time, they would get it right.

 **End of Part Five**


	52. Chapter 50: Underground Again

**PART SIX: THE ROYAL SCIENTISTS**

Chapter 50: Underground Again

When Frisk had finished reloading the Save File, they were back in the last room with Asgore, staring at the Barrier. As expected, he seemed to have no knowledge that they'd just rewound time.

"Here we are…" the King said gravely. "This is the Barrier, the field that keeps us trapped underground. If by any chance you have unfinished business… please go back and do what you must."

"Okay," Frisk replied. "I want to take care of something."

"Very well. Take your time, I will be waiting here for when you are ready."

They trudged away from the room and walked back through Asgore's castle to the elevator they'd first come out of. Frisk used it to return to the Core, which was now practically silent. The mercenaries they'd battled their way past earlier were still there, but made no attempts to fight them. Whimsalot even explained that they'd stopped working for Mettaton because they weren't actually paid at all. Final Froggit and Astigmatism waved hello to Frisk as they passed by. Things were quite peaceful now, which they greatly appreciated.

It wasn't until they'd made it back to the bridge connecting the Core to MTT Resort that something happened. Their phone rang, displaying Papyrus' number. Intrigued, Frisk answered only to hear Undyne instead.

"Hey, punk! I need- shut up, Papyrus, this was your idea- I know you're probably eager to get to the Capital, but if you've got a minute can ya do something for me?"

"Sure, I'm not gonna go yet anyway. What's up?"

"Really? Uh, great! So, I need you to deliver something for me. Can you come pick it up? I'm in Snowdin right now."

"On my way."

Frisk hung up the phone and kept walking through Hotland until they found a small river flowing in spite of the tremendous heat. River Person was there on its boat.

"Tra la la… hello again, human. I did not expect to see you here again. Would you like another ride with me?"

They nodded and climbed in.

"Yes, please. Can you take me to Snowdin?"

As if on cue, the boat started moving. River Person was singing to itself again.

"Tra la la… the water is very wet today… but not as wet as it is tomorrow… tra la la… the Angel is coming…"

"The Angel? Do you mean the one that the Delta Rune prophesized?"

"That's right…" it replied in a monotonous voice. "The Angel who has seen the surface world... tra la la… beware of the man who speaks in hands…"

Frisk decided not to ask for elaboration on either of those statements, as River Person had moved on to singing more nonsense. They reached their destination shortly after.

"Tra la la… come again, Frisk-Human. Well done on Mettaton's show, by the way."

It felt good to be back in Snowdin Town again after their travels. The cheerful atmosphere brought a smile to Frisk's face, and the monsters there all welcomed them heartily, having also seen them dueling Mettaton. Some even asked for autographs from the human, to which they agreed (though with some embarrassment). Frisk enjoyed their short stroll through the town before reaching the home of the skeleton brothers. Papyrus and Undyne were standing out front.

"There you are! So, I need you to deliver this, uh… letter… to Doctor Alphys. I'd bring it myself, but… Hotland suuuucks! I don't wanna have to go over there!"

They vividly remembered how badly the heat had affected her.

"It's fine, I'll take it for you."

"Thanks a lot, Frisk. I owe you one! Oh yeah…"

She was suddenly glowering down at them.

"You'd BETTER NOT read it if ya know what's good for ya."

They held up their hands defensively in response as she handed them the letter.

"I won't, I promise."

Frisk remembered that Sans had given them his key after judging their soul so they could learn "the truth," whatever that meant.

"Hey Papyrus, mind if I come in for a second? Your brother told me I could have a look inside his room."

"REALLY? WELL, I SUPPOSE YOU CAN BE TRUSTED. JUST… BE CAREFUL, OKAY? IT'S LIKE A DIFFERENT WORLD IN THERE… A WORLD WHERE VACCUUMS DON'T EXIST."

"Is he here right now?"

"NO, I THINK HE WENT TO GO SPEND MORE TIME WITH THAT DOOR IN THE FOREST. I WONDER WHAT HE EVEN DOES OUT THERE…"

"Yeah, me too… hehehe…"

Frisk walked into the house and ascended the stairs, approaching Sans' room. They removed the key from their pocket and unlocked the door. Strangely, a loud, reverberating bang echoed through the air when they'd stuck the key into the hole. A bit apprehensive about actually entering his room, they very slowly opened the door. It was pitch black in there.

Frisk took a hesitant step inside to try and find a light switch, and the door slammed shut behind them. They couldn't see anything at all, and merely stumbled forward blindly in the darkness. After about a minute of walking in a straight path but not seeming to get anywhere, Frisk was surprised when a sudden light flared around them. They clumsily fell to the ground, landing painfully on their side.

"I WONDER IF THEY'RE IN… OH, WHY ARE YOU ON THE FLOOR?"

Papyrus was standing by the door to the room, his hand still outstretched toward the wall-mounted light switch he'd just flipped. He stared down at Frisk with a confused look on his face.

"AND WHAT WERE YOU DOING USING A TREADMILL IN THE DARK? IF YOU WANT TO EXERCISE YOU COULD ALWAYS TALK TO UNDYNE. JUST MAKE SURE YOU SAY 'NO' IF SHE ASKS TO PLAY THE SNOW – WRESTLING GAME. I HATE THAT GAME!"

They sat up and looked behind them. Papyrus was right; Frisk had appeared to be endlessly walking through Sans' room because a treadmill was slowly running directly in the center of it.

"ANYWAY, YOU HAVEN'T SEEN MY ACTION FIGURES IN HERE, HAVE YOU?"

"Uh… no."

"WAIT, NEVER MIND! I KNOW WHERE TO LOOK! IN MY COLLECTION! NYEH HEH HEH, I'M SUCH A GENIUS!"

Papyrus rushed out of the room, leaving a confused Frisk in his wake. They got to their feet to further examine the bedroom, trying to think of a good word to describe it.

Sans, across their travels, had earned a hefty mysteriousness due to his ability to teleport and his knowledge of LOVE- which they had to remind themselves was actually "Level of Violence"- and Save Files. Frisk had been expecting his room to be a mystical lair filled with bizarre objects and tools… but instead, it perfectly matched the laziness he projected.

The place reeked of ketchup, and there were stains of it on a few parts of the walls. A large pile of dirty socks sat abandoned in a corner of the room, and Frisk couldn't help but feel like that was the "collection" Papyrus had been talking about when they first arrived in Snowdin Forest. Directly opposite the pile was the closest thing to what they'd expected: what appeared to be a self-sustaining miniature tornado that whirled various bits of garbage through the air. It didn't seem to have a purpose other than, they suspected, so Sans could claim to keep his room clean. His bed- really just a lone mattress with no frame- was crammed in a third corner with the sheets rolled up into a bulging, creasy ball and an uncovered pillow on top of it. The final corner of the room held a nightstand with a lamp and a single drawer. Frisk quickly realized that the lamp didn't even have a lightbulb in its socket but rather a flashlight with no batteries.

The room was, for lack of a better word, very "Sans."

They saw a note taped to the treadmill they'd just been walking on. A frown overtook their expression the moment they read it.

"the truth is… that you just got owned, nerd."

He'd pranked them from across time and space. Frisk had no idea how they could possibly pay him back for that.

"Maybe I could hide some of his stuff…? I guess it'd be a start…"

They opened the drawer to look inside for something to take. All that was in there was a silver key labeled "Back Door." Frisk picked it up, their curiosity getting the better of them, and left the room. Papyrus and Undyne were in the kitchen at the moment, furiously cooking something, so neither of them noticed the human exit. They walked around the house to the back where, sure enough, there was a locked metal door. Frisk slid the key in and opened it, revealing a flight of stairs leading under the building. Wondering what kind of secrets were stored there, they walked down and found themselves in a room that just didn't seem like it belonged there.

It was some kind of workshop, the last thing they'd expect to see under the skeletons' house. The purple-tiled floor and light turquoise walls gave it a somewhat chilly look, certainly not helped by the fact that the temperature itself was frigid. A bench with a line of drawers and several strange tools on top of it sat in one corner of the room, and in the other was a large pink curtain hiding something.

Frisk couldn't identify any of the tools on the workbench, but their attention had only fallen on them for a moment before they noticed a sheet of blueprints tacked up on the wall. The design was some kind of metallic sphere with two large prongs that bore a strange resemblance to Omega Flowey's bulb head. They couldn't tell much else about it due to the writing on the blueprints being a random jumble of indecipherable symbols.

Moving on from that, Frisk looked inside the drawers to find an even more mysterious assortment of items. One contained a small, silver badge in the shape of the Delta Rune with "Royal Scientist" printed on it in significantly faded letters. It was placed on top of a neatly-folded black lab coat that looked far too big for the human. The drawer next to it held a photo album. Frisk opened it and began perusing the various pictures inside. A few of them were of Sans and Papyrus doing mundane activities like cooking or setting up puzzles, but for the most part the album showed Sans doing much more notable things.

Frisk wasn't sure what was more surprising: the fact that the skeleton seemed to be hard at work (with heavy emphasis on _work_ ) in what appeared to be several experiments in science and engineering, or the fact that he was doing so with a large number of monsters they didn't recognize. The album seemed to focus on a massive construction project, possibly for the Core judging by some of the multicolored electronic materials being used. All of the workers, Sans included, looked quite pleased with their jobs.

The last page of the photo album had no pictures but rather a slip of paper with a very crude drawing of three smiling people and the words "never forget" written at the top. Frisk was able to recognize two of them as Sans and Papyrus, but the third was a monster they'd never seen before. It had an ovular head with a pair of large round eyes and two dark lines running vertically along its face, but they couldn't make out much else of it.

The human was about to leave the workshop, but the curtain at the far end of it proved too mysteriously alluring, and they wandered over to investigate. Pulling it aside, Frisk was greeted with a dusty contraption that could best be described as resembling the skeletal head of a dragon, complete with short horns sprouting from the back. The whole thing was white in color and very dusty, appearing to be broken due to the various cracks throughout its jaws. A note on the side identified it as a "G-Blaster 2.0," whatever that meant.

Frisk's mind was full of questions as to what the workshop was and what Sans had been doing there, but they eventually decided that they shouldn't have been snooping and left without looking back. The human returned to Snowdin's river bank and waited for River Person to come by, travelling back to Hotland.


	53. Chapter 51: Undyne's Request

Chapter 51: Undyne's Request

 **Author's Note: Wow, over 11,000 views! Thanks so much for the support!**

Eventually, Frisk was waiting entrance to Alphys' laboratory with the letter clutched in their hands. There didn't seem to be a mailbox, so they just slid it beneath the door and knocked. After a few seconds, they could hear the scientist nervously muttering to herself on the other side.

"Oh n-no… not another letter… can't I just slide it back out? I don't want to read it…"

They weren't sure what she was talking about, until the memory of the odd stack of unopened letters from several monsters came to mind. Why did she seem so afraid of mail? Frisk knew that she was rather timid, but it was almost suspicious of her to act like that.

"No… I can't keep doing this. I'll read this one."

She was grunting a bit through the door.

"Um… it's sealed kind of strongly, isn't it? Who even wrote… wait a second…"

Suddenly, the door opened. Frisk took a step backwards to avoid looking like they'd been listening while Alphys emerged, her eyes cast down at the ground with a sad expression.

"Hey, if this is supposed to be some kinda joke it's…"

The look on her face became one of confusion, then slight embarrassment when she noticed Frisk standing there.

"Uh… did _you_ write this? It wasn't signed… it's kind of adorable, I had no idea you wrote so, um, forcefully!"

"Actually, I was just-"

"It's surprising," she cut them off, "that you think this even after I did all that bad stuff… I don't really deserve to be forgiven… but you know what? I'll accept! It's the least I can do to make it up to you, right?"

They frowned.

"What are you-"

"Yeah! Let's go on a date!" Alphys said cheerfully. "I'll go get changed, be right back!"

Frisk unhappily realized that they'd somehow asked her out via misunderstanding. They couldn't even appreciate the fact that Undyne had been the one who _really_ wrote the date letter thanks to their surprise. Just as they were about to call her and ask to clear up the situation, however, Alphys returned wearing a pink and red spotted dress. She was blushing quite a bit and Frisk didn't have the heart to tell her the truth at that point, seeing how happy she looked.

"Y-you like the dress? My friend helped me pick it out, she has a really great sense of… a-anyway, let's get started! Here, I've got some items that can raise your affection statistic… you know, to increase the chance of a successful outcome to the date…"

Alphys began digging around through a small bag she carried while they just stared in bewilderment.

"Let's see, there's metal armor polish… uh, maybe you can't really use that. Oh, I also brought some waterproof cream for your scales! Your scales that… you don't have… maybe this magical spear repair kit that… uh… f-forget about the gifts."

She hurriedly stashed away the bag.

"We should go somewhere… I know, let's visit the dump!"

"…sure…"

River Person, who happened to be floating past Hotland, was more than happy to bring the two to the Waterfall garbage disposal in its boat.

"Tra la la, Alphys…" it said to the Royal Scientist. "I have not seen you in a while… where is Captain Undyne? She is normally with you."

She just blushed profusely.

"Um… F-Frisk and I are on a date right now, so… she's not here."

"Is she cooking with Sans and his brother?"

"I think just Papyrus…"

Frisk's attention was drawn toward River Person.

"You know who Sans is?"

"Tra la la… of course I do… I helped transport supplies between Snowdin and Hotland while the Core was being built, and he took many rides with me."

"Did you meet Doctor Gaster?" they asked, perhaps a bit too eagerly.

"Tra la la… here we are…"

They were dropped off at the dump without being able to ask anything else. Not satisfied, however, Frisk turned to Alphys for more answers. Their curiosity about W.D. Gaster was only increasing after seeing what they assumed was Sans' secret workshop (which, for obvious reasons, they didn't mention). The Royal Scientist was able to describe how he'd been a kind boss to her and very caring at heart, but twenty years without him had caused her memories to fade somewhat. She didn't even know what W.D. stood for.

"Well, here we are at the dump!" she said once they'd walked some ways in. "Undyne and I come here all the time, we find tons of great stuff. She's really… uh oh…"

Alphys was looking somewhere in the distance, visibly panicking.

"T-that's her over there! I can't let her see you on a date with me, I..."

Without saying another word, she scurried to hide behind a nearby garbage can, leaving Frisk alone in the middle of the dump as Undyne rushed in. She was wearing a black leather jacket with more stylish-looking jeans and boots. Her hair, once just a flowing red ponytail, now partly hung over her eyepatch and appeared to have been neatly combed. It was actually a rather strange look for her; she never seemed the type to dress up.

"Hey! There you are!" Undyne called to Frisk. "I realized that giving you the letter might've been a bad move, it could give the wrong idea… so I'm gonna deliver it personally! Let me have it back!"

They had to think quickly.

"I, um, lost it before I could give it to Alphys…"

"You _lost_ it?! NGAHHH! Well, have you at least seen her anywhere?!"

"…um… no, I haven't. She wasn't at the lab, and I can't seem to find her here."

"Ugh, where the heck could she be?!" Undyne groaned, stomping away.

Once she was out of sight, Alphys sheepishly came out from her hiding spot behind the trash can. She had a sad look on her face.

"Heh… I guess it's obvious now… I, um, really like her… s-sorry, I just figured it would be fun to go on a cute, uh, pretend date with you? You seemed excited, anyway…"

The Royal Scientist sighed dejectedly.

"She's the one I really want to go on a date with, but she's way out of my league… confident, and strong, and funny… I could never be worthy of her."

Frisk wasn't sure if they should be irritated or amused.

"Well… that letter I gave you was actually from Undyne. I guess she just didn't sign her name. But Alphys, don't you know what that means? She wants to date you too!"

To their surprise, her expression only became more depressed.

"That's… I-I could never go out with her, though… I've told her so many lies, at this point she thinks I'm a lot cooler than I really am. If she gets close to me… she'll learn the truth."

"Then just tell her yourself!" they encouraged.

"What?! But then she'll hate me! Isn't it better this way, for two people to live a lie but be happy rather than know the truth and be miserable? Everyone always says to just be yourself, but… I don't really like who 'myself' is. I prefer just being whatever makes people happy."

A long silence passed between them before Alphys spoke up again.

"…no, you know what? You're right. I can't keep doing this to her, or to myself. But how will I be able to tell her the truth? I don't have the confidence, I'll just mess it up…"

Frisk thought about the situation.

"Why don't we roleplay it? I'll pretend to be Undyne, and you'll tell me the truth. That way you can practice."

She giggled nervously.

"That sounds kinda fun! Okay, let's try it… ahem… h-hi Undyne! Nice to see you today!"

"Hey, Alphys!" Frisk responded in their best impression of the fish monster. "What's up?"

"Wow, you're good… I m-mean, I have to tell you something… I haven't been, um… honest with you…"

"Oh yeah? You can tell me the truth, I won't be mad."

The Royal Scientist was sweating profusely as she continued speaking.

"I… I want to tell you how I feel. You're brave, and strong, and nice, and you always listen to me when I talk about nerdy stuff… you make me feel special, Undyne…"

All of a sudden, her composure seemed to just disappear at once. Alphys began to shout her response to the open air.

"UNDYNE! I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANY LONGER! I'M MADLY IN LOVE WITH YOU! HOLD ME! HOLD ME IN YOUR STRONG, LOVING-"

"WHAT did you just say?!" a voice cried from behind her. Undyne had reappeared and was staring at Alphys with a bewildered look on her face.

"Oh- um- Undyne, I-"

She cut off the Royal Scientist.

"Hey, your outfit's really cute, Alphys! What's the occasion… wait a second… are you two on a _date_?"

"Uh-" Frisk began.

"YES! I mean, NO! I mean, we were only romantically roleplaying as you and… I… I've been lying to you about..."

Undyne slipped her hands into her pockets, patiently waiting for the explanation. It came after less than a second.

"…about EVERYTHING! I said that seaweed was scientifically important, but really I just use it to make ice cream! Those human history books I have are nothing more than nerdy comics! And the movies are just… anime! They're not real! Those sword-wielding robot princesses you like so much are all fake!"

"Alphys."

"I just wanted to impress you… I really like you, Undyne, and I wanted you to think I was smart and cool, not just some nerdy loser…"

"Alphys," she repeated, crouching slightly to rub her friend's back comfortingly. Then, without warning, Undyne lifted her clear off the ground and tossed her through the air into the garbage can she'd just been hiding behind.

"Listen up!" the fish monster announced in a loud voice. "I, uh, really like you too! But you've gotta realize… most of what you said doesn't matter to me. I don't care if you're watching kid cartoons or reading history books, to me that's all just NERDY CRAP! What I like about you is that you're super passionate and analytical! It doesn't matter what you're into, just that you're INTO IT! 100%! AT MAXIMUM POWER!"

Undyne was getting a bit worked up but showed no signs of quieting down.

"So don't lie to me or anyone anymore, got it? I like you too, and I'm always gonna trust you! I wanna help you become happy with who you are, and I know just the training for it!"

Alphys peeked out from inside the trash can.

"R-really? You want to train me?"

That got a laugh out of Undyne, while Frisk just silently watched the exchange.

"What? ME? Nah, I'm gonna get someone else to do it. Hey Papyrus, come on out!"

The tall skeleton emerged from behind a pile of garbage, also wearing a ridiculous new outfit. Rather than his "battle body" suit of armor, he was dressed in an exercise headband, shorts, and a t-shirt that read "Jogboy" on the front. He still had his signature cape, boots, and gloves.

"GET THOSE BONES SHAKIN,' DOCTOR ALPHYS! TIME TO JOG A HUNDRED LAPS, HOOTING ABOUT HOW GREAT WE ARE! THE TIMER STARTS IN A FEW SECONDS!"

She crawled out of the can and stood with him, preparing to run.

"I'll d-d-do my best, Undyne. Thank you."

With that, Alphys and Papyrus began jogging off through the dump and into Waterfall. Frisk stood there quietly, taking in everything that had just happened. They wondered how it could potentially help them get a better ending, like Flowey had said. Their reflection was disturbed when Undyne suddenly began screeching at them.

"OH MY GOD! She was kidding, right?! You're a human, you came from the surface! All that cool flashy stuff in the cartoons and comics… that's what life up there really IS like, isn't it?! ANIME'S REAL, RIGHT FRISK?!"

As excited as she seemed, they didn't want to lie. Especially after convincing Alphys to tell the truth.

"Um… no, it isn't…"

Undyne's expression looked like she'd just taken a punch to the stomach.

"No… NO! I CAN FEEL MY HEART BREAKING INTO PIECES!"

Fortunately, it didn't take her long to compose herself.

"…keep it together, damn it… I can get through this, I have to! For Alphys! Thanks for being honest, Frisk. Now, uh… aren't you going to the Capital? Good luck out there."

She trotted off, and the human was alone with no idea what to do next. Shrugging their shoulders, they simply began making their way toward the dump's exit.

The phone rang again at some point along the way.


	54. Intermission

Intermission

 **Author's Note: Now comes the part of the story that I add quite a bit to. I hope I do well with this new content! The remainder of the plot's events will play out similarly to the original game, though.**

The Underground positively buzzed with excitement. Between Mettaton's latest show and stories of his co-star's adventures over roughly the last week spreading like wildfire, the entire kingdom was in higher spirits than it had been for a long time. One could hardly walk for ten minutes without coming across some reference to the spectacles of media, and with rumors that King Asgore would soon meet the newcomer personally caused an even larger stir. Could they somehow cooperate to destroy the Barrier? Could the visitor from above who'd captured the hearts of monsters everywhere decide to remain there with them? What if things turned violent between them? UnderNet in particular was ablaze with debates over whether King Asgore should try to stop his imminent guest. The Kingdom of Monsters held its breath, waiting to see what fate had in mind.

However, some remained out of touch with the media. As Frisk the Human set out to deliver Undyne's letter to Doctor Alphys, a similarly-sized monster was on a mission of his own. The smooth-scaled creature scurried through one of Waterfall's outskirt villages, darting between buildings and hiding in shrubs as he stalked his target. Large white eyes narrowed when the magical sensation drawing him closer intensified.

The thief was near, and he still carried something of great value.

There was no danger of the small monster being recognized or even identified, but he didn't want to leave anything up to chance. He peered out from a patch of seaweed to see the individual he was looking for, standing not far away and facing the other direction. Despite that particular area being very dark, there was no mistaking him: Recycler, an unsubtle yet surprisingly cunning burglar who prized himself on putting his "trophies" to good use.

Indeed, not a single garment he wore genuinely belonged to him, from his professional suit to his casual shoes to the eerie smiling mask he constantly had on. He was notorious for his supposed talent of appearing wherever he wished at a moment's notice, swiping an object of value, and vanishing without a trace just as quickly. Two things were certain about Recycler: he seemed capable of only talking in rhymes, and he frequently boasted about his natural teleportation before escaping the authorities.

 _"Not even his power belongs to him…"_

The small monster following him could attest to the former from personal experience, but the latter fact was entirely untrue. Recycler, like most monsters, didn't have the ability to teleport. Instead, he simply made use of the very first thing he'd stolen almost a decade and a half earlier: a shard of a dull white leg bone. This item could heavily distort space around it and warp the holder almost anywhere within the Barrier he so wished, having been taken from a haphazardly-locked laboratory.

Just thinking about it made the small monster's blood boil. And now, with Recycler so carelessly standing in the marsh's tall grass, he could finally make things right. He crept through the plant matter toward the suited being and tried to determine how to go about this. Regrettably, his puny body lacked most offensive capabilities. No claws, no weapons, very little potential for magic attacks, and he didn't even have arms. All he had was a set of somewhat sharp teeth and a sturdy lizard tail.

 _"Regardless… I have to at least try. I may not be able to find him again."_

After getting a bit closer, the small monster realized that his target was cradling the very bone he sought in his arms and staring into space. Perhaps the powerful item caused him more mental stress than he thought. All the better to make him unassuming and easily-ambushed, and that weakness was immediately exploited.

With a sudden lunge, the reptilian monster sank his teeth into the gloved hand of the burglar. The attack caught him off guard, and Recycler didn't have time to react before his assailant swiped his tail at the bone fragment. It sailed out of his hands, landing somewhere in a nearby patch of seaweed. Shaking his arm in an attempt to dislodge the creature's teeth, he growled out a rhyme as usual.

"How dare you harm my poor palm, worm?! I, Recycler, will make you burn!"

"You're losing your touch if that's the best rhyme you have," the small monster said in a muffled voice before being flung off the thief's hand at last.

He landed hard on his feet and stared up at his much taller foe. Fortunately for him, being shrouded by the grass made up for his height disadvantage. Recycler brandished a weapon- a stolen Royal Guard's sword- and hacked away at the plants before him in a frenzy. The reptilian monster carefully sidestepped him and made for the fallen bone. It magically pulled at him, calling him closer until he was right on top of it. Not having arms didn't trouble him; he'd prepared for the occasion by bringing a small bag to carry the bone in.

Recycler heard the rustling seaweed as he hurriedly stuffed the item into the bag. Cackling, he charged straight at the shorter monster.

"Aha, I've found you at last! Prepare yourself, your death comes fast!"

"Your poetry is _atrocious_!" he shouted, leaping up and connecting with the thief in a direct headbutt.

The small creature's very mind felt like it had been struck with a hammer, but he was otherwise fine; having a scaly hide had its perks now and then. However, the same couldn't be said for Recycler. His smiling mask was cracked down the middle from the impact, and he toppled backwards with a groan.

Silence fell on the area as their brief struggle ended. Seeing as the defeated party hadn't been killed, the small monster's soul showed no increase in LOVE or EXP.

"That's a relief. Now, what to do with you..."

He dragged the unconscious Recycler toward the river with his teeth and waited there for almost ten minutes (keeping a close eye on him) until something appeared from around a wall of the cavern.

"Tra la la… hello there, little one… would you like to take a ride on my boat?"

River Person, something of a minor celebrity yet also an enigma in the Underground, approached with the same nonchalant droning voice as ever.

"Yes, please. Can you bring the two of us to Hotland?"

"Of course I can. Haul him aboard."

As the small monster dragged Recycler onto the boat, River Person hummed thoughtfully and began the ride.

"Tra la la… say, your friend looks like that thief…"

"He is. I'm bringing him in."

"That's nice… he stole my oars, you know."

He frowned, hoping that the Hotland Royal Guard would be able to find where he'd hidden his stolen goods.

"I'm very sorry to hear that, River Person."

"Tra la la… that's fine. I've never even owned oars."

Perhaps it would be best NOT to question the logic behind that. As the ride continued, their "captain" sang more and more to nobody in particular.

"Beware of the man… who speaks in hands…"

"What do you mean by that?"

River Person didn't turn to look at the small gray monster, but unusually decided to answer a rider's question.

"The man who speaks in hands… the man who oversaw the construction of our Core, and who vanished one day long ago… tra la la… his name eludes me at the moment. Beware him, for he… is very clumsy with fire magic. He burned my boat once."

The small monster cringed slightly and looked down to his left. Sure enough, an old but sizeable scorch mark could be seen on the side of the boat.

"I'm sure he didn't mean to-"

"Tra la la… here we are."

He didn't have a chance to say much else to River Person before the boat departed again. The lizard dragged Recycler onto Hotland's shore and left him there until a Royal Guard patrol came along. Recognizing the thief, they arrested him without hesitation as the small monster watched from a nearby hiding spot.

"Justice served… and I got the bone shard, too. All that's left is…"

Doctor Alphys' laboratory didn't take very long to walk to. The monster arrived just in time to see her leaving in a nervous sweat and a garish-looking dress with Frisk the Human, who admittedly wasn't in much better attire. They appeared to be heading toward the next junction of the river.

 _"Perfect..."_

He knew that Alphys had neglected to lock the door behind her, as she often did. That bad habit of hers normally would have caused him irritation, but this time it was just what he needed.

The monster entered her laboratory and stared at a certain door which had also been left unlocked, leading to an elevator. If his predictions were correct, the human would come this way soon. He stepped inside, beginning to descend into the lower lab.

It was time to see just how determined Frisk was.


	55. Chapter 52: The True Laboratory

Chapter 52: The True Laboratory

Frisk answered the ringing phone to the sound of Papyrus' voice. He appeared to be mumbling to someone just outside of their hearing range.

"OKAY, I'LL DO IT… HOWDY, HUMAN! IF IT ISN'T MY GOOD FRIEND, WHO TRUSTS ME! THIS IS PAPYRUS, YOUR ALSO MUTUAL FRIEND. ALPHYS AND I FINISHED OUR TRAINING EARLY. VERY EARLY. SO I DECIDED TO SEND HER HOME. VERY HOME. I STRONGLY BELIEVE THAT YOU SHOULD GO THERE… ALSO. I HAVE ONLY GOOD FEELINGS ABOUT THIS. GOODBYE!"

He hung up immediately afterward, not letting them get a word in. The strange way he was talking and what exactly he'd been saying made it seem like he'd been reading off a sheet of paper. In fact, he'd opened up with "howdy," and Frisk only knew two people who used that word. There was King Asgore, and...

The human remembered Sans mentioning that a talking flower had befriended Papyrus, but they weren't sure what he could possibly have in mind. Still, with no clues on what else to do, they took a trip with River Person back to Hotland.

Alphys' lab was unusually silent. Nobody was there, and no whirring machinery could be heard. They cautiously walked through it until they came across a handwritten note on the floor, which they picked up and read.

 _"To Undyne, Papyrus, and Frisk: Hey. Thanks for helping me out back there. Your support really means a lot to me, you guys. But… as difficult as it is to say this… you can't magically make my problems go away by yourselves. I have to face my own mistakes now if I want to become a better person. Let me be clear, this isn't anyone else's problem. But… if you don't ever hear from me again, or if you want to know 'the truth…' enter the elevator near this note. You all at least deserve to know what exactly I did. Sincerely, Alphys."_

Frisk looked up from the letter; sure enough there was an elevator door just a few feet away. Growing concerned for their friend, they stepped in without hesitation. It seemed to only be able to travel between two floors, their current location in the laboratory and some kind of basement. They pushed the proper button to descend, and it began moving. However, after a few seconds the elevator's power cut out and Frisk plummeted down the shaft, bracing themselves for the impact of the car with the ground.

Such an impact never came, as the elevator had a built-in emergency brake system that caused them to merely come to a halt at the bottom of the shaft. It was non-functional, though, and Frisk couldn't go back up. Their only choice was to leave the car and explore. Prying the doors open, they finally got a look at where exactly they'd fallen. Within seconds, they inexplicably felt an enormous sense of dread.

The elevator had brought them down to a long teal-tiled hallway with very dim lighting. Some of the walls had cracks on them, others had small cobwebs, but for the most part it was empty to an unsettling degree. Frisk noticed with discomfort that the air was rich with a sickeningly sweet aroma, mixed with some kind of dusty scent. As they slowly walked down the hallway, they began to notice a few screens mounted on the walls and flickering messages at them. In actuality, they resembled test logs for experiments dating back at least three years. Recordings of Alphys' voice emitted from them.

 _"It's time… I have to live up to the King's expectations. I'm going to find a way out of here by unlocking the power of the soul. Unfortunately, it can't be recreated artificially, so we won't be able to break the Barrier by generating human soul power… this energy can only be derived from what was once living. So, to create more, we'll have to use what's on hand already: the souls of monsters. However, extracting a soul from a living monster would require an enormous amount of power. Besides being impractical, the host itself would die immediately and take its soul with it. Only humans and a special kind of monster have souls that can temporarily last outside the body… I need a way to stop them from disappearing."_

With an increasing sense of unease, Frisk kept walking through the depths of the laboratory. The sweet smell only got more and more intense, and the air became thicker. At one point they swore they heard something growl in the corridors ahead, but their imagination was beginning to act up by that point. They hoped that was the answer, anyway.

"Is someone there?" a voice called from the shadows. Frisk turned around to see someone they hadn't even thought about for a while: the gray-scaled Monster Kid lookalike from their first visit to the dump in Waterfall. What was he doing here?

"So... you've arrived, human. I suspected you'd make your way here at some point."

He seemed to have no hostile intent toward them and slowly walked closer.

"Who are you, exactly?" they asked.

"…that doesn't matter. Just call me Goner Kid if you must. I presume you want to find a way out?"

"Yes," Frisk admitted. "This place gives me the creeps."

Goner Kid pointed his tail toward a sealed metal door with four dark lightbulbs- tinted blue, green, yellow, and red- arranged in a square pattern.

"This leads to the central energy controller. You'll have to activate several colored terminals to enter here and restore power. The problem is, the keys for them aren't kept in one area and have gotten lost. You might want to start looking, or you'll be down here for a long time indeed. I'll come with you, I know the layout of this place."

With their new guide trotting next to them, Frisk felt more confident to some small degree, but was still worried about what they'd find.

"Say, Goner Kid… what are you doing in here, anyway?"

He just stared blankly ahead, not answering them. They coughed awkwardly and diverted their attention to the upcoming room. It had what appeared to be three operating tables lined up in a row. Each of them was coated in a thin layer of some white liquid that strongly emanated the sweet smell Frisk had noticed. More of the substance was dripping from the walls and even the ceiling. Upon accidentally touching some of it, the human noticed how sticky the stuff felt.

"Ugh, what is this?"

"You should ask Doctor Alphys the next time you see her. For now, come over here. I've found the first of the four keys, but as I lack arms I can't reach it."

Goner Kid was standing at a sink in the corner of the room, staring into the drain. Frisk approached and sure enough noticed a red glint in the hole. They stuck in a hand, grabbing the key and firmly grasping it.

"Well done, the red terminal is nearby- watch out!"

The two quickly backed away from the sink while a copious amount of the white substance flooded out of the faucet. Frisk watched in terror as whatever it was began to take some kind of physical shape, dragging itself from the sink.

"Some kind" was an appropriate description; the thing could barely seem to keep itself together. It dripped the substance comprising it all over the place and resembled a clustered ball with several agonized faces on its surface for a horrific melting effect. Goner Kid took another step backwards with a growl as the unnatural creature approached. Frisk's soul, sensing danger, emerged and tried to identify it, but couldn't recognize the thing. It let out an unintelligible screech that caused them to cover their ears with how loud it was. Not knowing what to do, Frisk slashed at it with the rusty dagger. The blade just phased through it with no effect.

"Human!" Goner Kid shouted. "It speaks through electronic waves, use your cell phone!"

They had to jump aside as the creature released a soundwave that sounded suspiciously like laughter from one of its many mouths. Frisk dug the phone out of their pocket and held it up to their ear. A high-pitched squeal of a voice could be heard through the receiver.

"We are Memoryhead… come join us, it's a real get together…"

Dodging another soundwave, Frisk gave it a firm stare.

"No. That's not happening."

Memoryhead paused in its movements. Through their phone, they heard it sigh in rejection.

"Fine. What a shame…"

With that, it slurped back up into the sink's faucet. Frisk turned to Goner Kid with a very pale face.

"What… what was that thing?!"

"It is called an Amalgamate, a collection of monsters trapped in one body together. And there are more of them here. Come, human, let's activate the red terminal."

He led them to an adjacent room that contained nothing but a device mounted to a wall with a faint red glow coming from somewhere inside it. Frisk stuck the key they'd found in, and the light intensified.

"Excellent, three to go. This way, human."


	56. Chapter 53: Asriel and Chara

Chapter 53: Asriel and Chara

Goner Kid was, for the most part, speechless unless there was something he felt was absolutely crucial to be said. He resolutely marched forward through the laboratory's dark teal corridors with few visible emotions. Frisk was right by his side, but slowed down to read more test logs from Alphys on screens they passed.

 _"I've done it. Using Doctor Gaster's old blueprints, I've fine-tuned the extractor. Asgore let me use the collected human souls… each of them exhibit a unique power source, but they all have one in common. I believe this is what lets them persist even while the humans themselves have died. The will to keep living, to change fate… Gaster proposed that such a feeling could be manifested within a soul before vanishing, turns out he was right. He called it… 'Determination.' I was able to extract a good amount from each of the souls."_

"W.D. Gaster was involved in this too?" Frisk asked quietly.

"Yes, of course he was," their previously silent guide said in response. "He was only able to make theories during his time… it seems Doctor Alphys put them into practice."

They reached a very large room with ten or so beds lined up in rows. Just like the operating tables from before, most of them were soaked in that drippy white substance that had comprised Memoryhead. A half-empty bowl of dog food with the name "Endogeny" written on it sat in the corner of the room, while various small potted plants lining parts of the walls offered some level of comfort in the dimly-lit area. Frisk noticed a yellow key sitting on one of the beds and picked it up. Considering its similar shape to the red key, they figured this was what they were looking for. Two doorways stood before Frisk and Goner Kid, the latter of whom pointed toward the one on the left.

"You found the yellow key? Good, the corresponding terminal is this way."

It didn't take long for another Amalgamate- this one a slavering creature with enormous fangs that Goner Kid called Lemon Bread- to attack. Frisk couldn't shake the feeling that it somehow looked familiar, and eventually realized that it was some freakish combination of a Shyren, a Moldbygg, and an Aaron from Waterfall. Fortunately, it was easily placated by humming and generally staying away.

Frisk, in the heat of the encounter, somehow had failed to notice the large machine nearby, but now their attention couldn't be taken off it. The device had the same circular base with two prongs emerging from the front as the blueprints they'd seen in Sans' workshop. A screen nearby identified it as the "Determination Extractor," which was evidently how Alphys had experimented on the human souls.

Goner Kid pointed his tail at a door next to the machine.

"You haven't lost the yellow key, have you? The next terminal is in there… among other things. I will stand guard out here in case more Amalgamates arrive, feel free to investigate."

They nodded and entered the door, quickly finding the yellow terminal. Frisk slotted the key inside, then looked around the room. It had another screen containing Alphys' test logs and two large shelves full of old VHS tapes, between which was a TV. First, they decided to inspect the screen mounted on the wall.

 _"Asgore asked everyone outside the capital for monsters who had 'fallen down.' Their bodies came in today… they're still comatose, and soon they'll all turn to dust. My plan is to inject them with some Determination from the human souls. Monster souls already seem to contain trace amounts of it, but maybe if I add more then they'll become similarly powerful. If I can get their souls to persist even without their bodies, freedom might be closer than we all thought. On a different note… while I was researching humans, I ended up snooping around the castle and found these weird tapes. Somehow, I feel like Asgore hasn't watched them… and I don't think he should."_

Frisk turned back to the VHS player and saw five particular tapes sitting beside it. After a brief hesitation, they decided to watch them to learn what Alphys had been so concerned about. The first one was too dark to see much of anything, but they could hear two voices- which they recognized as Toriel and Asgore- lovingly talking to each other in excitement for their upcoming child. It didn't take long for Frisk to deduce that said child must have been Asriel, and that the tape must have dated back at least a century and a half if the two were still married. There didn't seem like much to worry about with the recording overall.

The same couldn't be said about the next four, however.

They all showed completely black screens, but a new pair of voices could be heard among softly chirping birds. Frisk didn't recognize either. Fortunately, the conversations revealed their identities. The first voice- a gentle, innocent boy- was evidently Prince Asriel. The second was feminine, with a tone that sounded cheerful but somewhat unsettling for reasons Frisk couldn't explain.

 _"Okay, Chara! Do your creepy face!"_

 _"Right… like this?"_

 _"Aaaahhh! Hee hee!_

 _"Perfect~ wait, do you have the lens cap on that camera? The video's not gonna come out right."_

 _"Huh? Oops, let me take it off-"_

 _"Nope, too late. I'm not doing it again."_

 _"Aww, what? Stop tricking me! Haha!_

The next tape was only stranger.

 _"Howdy, Chara! Let me see your creepy smile again!"_

 _"Fiiine…"_

 _"Ha! Got you! I left the lens cap on… ON PURPOSE! Now you're smiling for nooo reason!"_

 _"All right, Asriel, you got me there. Wow, look at your face. I haven't seen you giggling so much since when Dad got over his illness…"_

 _"Oh right, I remember that! He'd been really sick for at least a week… it was those flowers we accidentally put in his pie, right? Man, how'd we confuse 'buttercups' for 'cups of butter' anyway?"_

 _"It was your idea, you know…"_

 _"Huh? I thought you were the one who said to use them. Either way, I felt so bad when we did that. I wish I'd have been able to just laugh it off like you did at the time."_

 _"…hey Asriel, I just thought of something. Turn off the camera."_

Judging by some of the stories from Asriel's journal in the Capital, and what had just been said here, Frisk could only think that Chara- the first human to enter the underground, they remembered- didn't seem like a very nice person. They wondered if she had somehow contributed to the monsters' poor attitude toward humans. The last two tapes transcended the line between strange and downright bone-chilling to hear. Just like the others, they were shot with the lens cap on, so only audio could be heard.

 _"Chara… I don't… I don't like this idea…"_

 _"What's the matter? Are you crying, brother? You're not doubting me NOW, are you?"_

 _"N-no, I'm not… big kids don't cry. I trust you! I do… we only need to get six, right? Six more and we can break the Barrier… yeah! We'll be strong and free everyone t-together!"_

 _"Good to hear you're not losing your nerve. Go get the buttercups."_

The final tape began with Toriel and Asgore's voices, then quickly transitioned to just Asriel and Chara again. It seemed that the family was standing around someone's- evidently the human's- bed.

 _"Can you hear me, child? We want you to wake up…"_

 _"Chara! You must stay determined! You are the future of humans and monsters!"_

 _"…she won't wake up. Come on, Asgore, let's leave them alone for a bit…"_

The King and Queen left.

 _"…C-Chara…?" Asriel said in a shaky voice. "Please, stop eating the flowers… I don't want to do this anymore."_

A violent fit of coughing came in response. The human was speaking through a harsh rasp.

 _"You said… you said you wouldn't doubt me… just six dead humans, and then everyone will be free… we'll be heroes, Asriel…"_

 _"…you're right. We'll do it together."_

The tape abruptly ended there, leaving Frisk absolutely stunned. They finally understood the plan, and what the notes from Doctor Gaster in Asriel's journal meant. Chara had gotten herself fatally sick, and after dying her soul had been given to the Prince, her brother. With a human and monster soul together, they transformed into a powerful being that could pass through the Barrier.

"Then… she'd said she wanted to see the flowers on the surface, right…? That was just a ruse!"

Frisk was horrified by what Chara had intended. Asriel, empowered by her, would kill six humans and bring the souls back to fully destroy the Barrier, thus starting another human-monster war. But… something didn't add up to them. No souls had been gained, and the Prince himself was mortally injured by the frightened humans.

"If that was the plan… why did the notes say that Asriel didn't attack anyone on the surface? He seemed like he didn't want to, after all… did he lose the will?"

Before they could think further, a loud commotion came from outside the room. Frisk dashed out to investigate, only to find themselves staring down another Amalgamate which could only be described as a large white blob shaped like a dog with a gaping hole in its face. The large beast emitted a growl from somewhere on its body (it had no visible mouth) and lumbered toward them menacingly. Goner Kid was nowhere to be seen.


	57. Chapter 54: Alphys, Royal Scientist

Chapter 54: Alphys, Royal Scientist

With a strangled-sounding roar, the Amalgamate (judging by its appearance and the name written on the dog bowl earlier, they guessed this one was Endogeny) charged at Frisk and attempted to slam into them. Its sheer size didn't seem to hamper its speed at all, but luckily it appeared rather clumsy, stumbling around the area and at one point even colliding with the Determination Extractor, which it quickly shied away from. The human wasted no time in fleeing down an adjacent hallway, desperately searching for a hiding spot or exit. Soon enough they came across a narrow door which they ducked into, having managed to somehow outrun Endogeny. The canine Amalgamate could be heard shuffling around nearby, but was apparently unable to find them. However physically imposing it looked, it wasn't bright.

Frisk's mind was racing as they hid in that room, which was evidently a bathroom. They were trapped in the depths of the laboratory with an unknown number of freakish monster fusions, as Goner Kid had called them. To make matters worse, he was missing, leaving them alone with Endogeny on their trail. Fortune smiled on- or perhaps took pity on- them in the form of a green key sitting in a nearby bathtub. Once they found the terminal for it, there would only be one left.

"Why can't Alphys just keep all these things in the same place?!"

Peeking outside and looking both ways to ensure that the coast was clear, Frisk bolted out of the bathroom and continued down the corridor until they reached a different room. Every area of the laboratory they found seemed to get stranger, as this one contained more notes from the good doctor and several large refrigerators which were labeled as holding various samples from test subjects. Frisk felt no desire to further investigate and tried to move on… that is, until one of the fridges suddenly morphed into yet another Amalgamate.

As the human got ready to deal with it, they noticed something different about this one. It had the most easily-identifiable shape out of them all, closely resembling Snowdrake from back in Snowdin Forest. This one had the same birdlike figure to it, but like Memoryhead and Lemon Bread appeared to hold several additional faces in various parts of its body, all of which were twisted into stares of fright and agony.

The tortured Amalgamate stumbled forward and let out a bizarre noise from its central mouth. It took Frisk a moment to realize that the thing was speaking in a garbled and heavily distorted female adult's voice.

"S…Snow…Snowy… where is…"

She was clearly struggling to hold her body together, as multiple parts were phasing between solid and liquid states as she walked. The Amalgamate wasn't scary at all to Frisk, more… sad.

"…my son…" she croaked, staring down the human with her many faces. "Do you know where…? Snowdrake… my son… where is he…?"

They were stunned by the horrifying truth of what they'd just learned about Snowdrake's mother. Frisk would have found her resolve to be strong for him more touching if they weren't currently looking at a magical abomination composed of who knows how many monsters. Still, there was only one way to answer.

"Uh… y-yes, I know him! I met Snowdrake in the forest outside the Ruins! He told me jokes about ice and stuff."

"H-ha ha ha… that boy has always dreamed… of becoming a comedian… I wish I could see him again…"

If their phone's connection to the UnderNet hadn't been so poor, they would have gladly typed him a message for the Amalgamate. Seemingly content nonetheless, she wandered off somewhere else in the lab and left Frisk alone. They decided to continue reading Alphys' notes on the screens now that they weren't being attacked for a moment.

 _"Nothing's working! All these bodies were supposed to disappear by now! I was gonna give the dust to the families for their funerals… why isn't anything happening? People are starting to ask me what's going on. What am I supposed to say? I guess I'll just keep injecting the bodies with Determination… I want this to work. This_ _ **has**_ _to work."_

The next entry only got more perplexing.

 _"Everyone who had fallen down… has woken up. All of the test subjects are walking around and talking like nothing had ever happened. I thought they were goners? Did the Determination somehow bring them back to life? Seems like this experiment hit a dead end, but… at least the monsters are all okay! I sent the human souls back to Asgore earlier today and planted the test vessel in his garden again. Now I'm gonna call the families of the subjects to let them know their loved ones are alive. I'll send them back home tomorrow!"_

Frisk heard a strange series of frantic noises in the test log all of a sudden.

 _"Wait... what's… what's happening to them… oh my god… o-oh no… no no no no NO NO NO NO!"_

The date on the recording indicated that whatever had happened to Alphys' test subjects had occurred a year earlier, meaning that they'd been stuck in their horrific and painful state of being for quite some time. Frisk already had a theory as to why they'd become Amalgamates: they recalled killing Undyne on their first attempt at getting past her in Waterfall, and how she'd begun generating a large amount of her own Determination. Given that her body couldn't seem to handle the strain and melted soon enough, they deduced that something similar had happened here. Except in this case, the poor monsters were too close to one another and wound up melting together.

"That's awful…"

They couldn't think about it for long, however, as Endogeny had found them. It roared loudly upon squirming into the room and gave chase, barreling toward Frisk. The human sidestepped its charge, winding up behind the Amalgamate. It couldn't stop itself and slid into a wall, then began staggering around and trying to reorient itself. While Endogeny was dazed, they ran on ahead. All that was before them was a small room housing the terminal for the green key, which they wasted no time in inserting. Frisk sprinted back the way they'd came, passing by the pursuing Amalgamate and not stopping until they arrived at the room with the many beds. This time, they took the path to the right. Without Goner Kid's guidance they had no idea what would be up ahead, but there was no time to waste. Endogeny wouldn't be distracted for long.

Frisk, thankfully, found a panel on the wall to shut the door behind them. It didn't seem to lock, but their pursuer wouldn't be able to open it other than through brute force. They stopped for a breather and looked around the room.

"What the…?"

Despite everything they'd encountered so far in the laboratory, for some reason none of it compared in sheer strangeness to the seemingly endless rows of potted golden flowers lined along the walls. They all looked exactly like Flowey, minus the face of course, and appeared to be growing healthily despite the lack of sunlight. More audio recordings from Alphys provided context, seemingly from before the test subjects melted together.

 _"I've selected these flowers as the control cases for my experiment. If I can get the monster souls to persist after death, then I'll need a vessel to contain them when the time comes. Monsters, after all, can't absorb souls from other monsters. Just like how humans can't take from each other. In that case… what would happen if something that's neither human nor monster, without any soul, were to gain the will to live?"_

Their thoughts were immediately on Flowey. Had he, a soulless flower with Determination powers, been created by Alphys? It seemed to be the case. A different log continued the chilling tale.

 _"Doctor Gaster told me that when the Prince returned from visiting the surface, seeds from these flowers stuck to him on the way back through the Barrier. Now they're growing all over the place. There's a particular flower I have in mind for the soul vessel… I haven't told Asgore yet because I want to surprise him. It's the first golden flower from the surface world that grew here, apparently right before the Queen left. Unfortunately, injecting it with Determination hasn't had any effect yet, just like the other flowers…"_

The next recording was from a few days after the Amalgamates had been created, and only contained one sentence.

 _"The flower's gone."_

As Frisk walked through the room, they stewed over what they'd learned. While they couldn't say for certain, a disturbing theory had become evident. Flowey, they thought, was likely that very first golden flower to grow underground, and had sprouted in the garden of Asgore's castle around the time when Toriel left in disgust, according to the notes from Alphys. That would mean that Asriel and Chara were dead already, with the Prince having turned to magic dust that spread across the garden…

…potentially allowing a flower to grow faster than normal, maybe even imbuing it with a personality.

Frisk didn't have to mull their sudden revelation over for too long, as they were quickly made aware that another Amalgamate was in the room. "Reaper Bird," they felt compelled to call it, resembled a twisted fusion of a Whimsalot, Astigmatism, and Final Froggit in the shape of a tall, lanky avian figure. It made no attempt to attack them, instead just staring with a piercing gaze. If anything, Frisk thought it looked like it was in considerable pain from being so unnaturally arranged (Astigmatism seemed to have become its head and was clearly not meant to be in such a positon). Reaper Bird curled itself up and laid down in the corner, still looking directly at the human.

"Guess I'll just move on…"

To their immense relief, the blue terminal was in the very next room, with the matching key sitting on the floor beside it. Frisk slotted the key in and felt a bit of relief; now they could reactivate power to the elevator and escape the laboratory. Leaving the tragic Amalgamates down there didn't sit right with them, but they had no idea what else to do.

"All right, here's your dinner…"

They were startled to hear Alphys' voice and ran back out to where Reaper Bird sat. Sure enough, she was standing beside it and offering a plate of noodles to the creature. She noticed Frisk and let out a shriek.

"T-there you are! I've been trying to turn the power back on, but… I guess you're taking care of that for me. This has probably been just a big inconvenience… are you hurt?"

"I'm fine. Are these things usually aggressive?"

She sighed and gave Reaper Bird a pat on its soft, gelatinous head.

"No, they just get a little sassy if they aren't fed on time… they must have smelled the food in your bag. Um, thanks for coming here to help me with the power. Like I said, I wasn't sure if I'd ever come back. N-not because of these guys though! I was just worried that I'd be too afraid to tell the truth… that I might run away, or do something cowardly… I suppose I owe you an explanation."

"Don't worry about it, I listened to your test logs. I'm only curious about why the monsters you experimented on wound up like this."

Alphys gestured for Frisk to follow her back toward the power control center. The two passed by the other Amalgamates along the way, including Endogeny (which was now eating happily out of its food bowl and paid no mind to the human). As they walked, she answered their question.

"Monsters are mostly comprised of magic with a little physical matter in them, while humans are the other way around. That also means that humans can handle large concentrations of Determination from their souls. On the other hand, monsters will just break down their physical bodies with too much. And… that's what happened here. When I saw this, I knew there was no way I could bring them back to their families."

"Is there any way to make them normal again?"

"…no. They'll be like this for the rest of their lives, however long those might be."

She sighed.

"I never told anyone about this. And since I was so afraid of how badly I'd failed, I stopped work altogether. That's when I really closed myself off… but now, I've changed my mind. I'm going to tell everyone what I've done and send the Amalgamates home after this."

"That's the right thing to do," Frisk said. "I'll do anything I can to help."

"Thank you… it's going to be hard, being honest and believing in myself… I'm sure there'll be times when I screw up again. But knowing that I have friends like you, who support me, will make it easier to deal with."

Both were silent until they finally made it back to the door with the four colored lightbulbs, now glowing due to the activation of the terminals. The pair entered the power room, which looked like most of the other areas of the lower laboratory but housed a large generator against the back wall with several wires coming off it. More interestingly, however, was that Frisk and Alphys weren't alone. Goner Kid was standing in the middle of the room, a small but noticeable grin on his face.


	58. Chapter 55: Dark, Darker, Yet Darker

Chapter 55: Dark, Darker, yet Darker

"Goner Kid?" Frisk asked aloud. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, Endogeny proved too aggressive for me to handle, so I simply made my way here and waited for you to unlock the terminals. I knew you could do it."

Sitting at the lizard monster's feet was a white bone fragment, which the human recognized as formerly belonging to that masked and suited monster in Hotland. There was also a small vial of some glowing red substance.

"That's… Determination!" Alphys cried, staring at it.

"Indeed it is. At last I have everything I need to reform myself. My soul, trapped in this body… a shard of who I once was, reclaimed from a thief… and just enough Determination to sustain my return."

Goner Kid's body began to melt like one of the Amalgamates, dripping over the vial and bone. A swirl of black gas spouted from the mixture until Frisk's eyesight was completely obscured by it. For about thirty seconds they stood desperately trying to wave the gas away, but it eventually vanished on its own, revealing a very different monster where Goner Kid had just been. To their side, Alphys let out an audible gasp.

The figure before them stood at around six feet tall and was predominantly dressed in a long-sleeved black lab coat, buttoned up at the front but with the top few open to reveal a white shirt of some kind underneath. His thin legs were also covered by black clothing, specifically long pants and professional-looking shoes.

Frisk didn't realize it at first, but this monster was unmistakably a skeleton. Poking out from his sleeves was a pair of dull white hands, the individual bones of which could clearly be made out. Strangely, his palms had large, perfectly circular holes cut through them. His skull, more "natural" in shape than that of Sans and Papyrus, was easily his most defining characteristic. He had the same magically contorting eye sockets and mouth as the two other skeletons (complete with white "pupils" like Sans), but appeared to have two thin cracks- one extended upwards from his right eye, the other downwards from his left. The monster began to quietly laugh, and his entire body rattled with the movement.

"D… Doctor?" Alphys said in almost a whisper of disbelief. "Is that… is that really you?!"

Her apparent familiarity could only mean one thing, Frisk realized. This skeleton was him, the famous Royal Scientist, Alphys' predecessor… the renowned Doctor W.D. Gaster. He finally began to speak; his voice was very deep but seemed to naturally waver, making him somewhat hard to understand.

"Dark… darker… yet darker…" he growled out, staring at his own newly-formed body. "The darkness, it kept growing… the shadows forever cutting into me. But I persisted, for what I learned during my experiment was very, _very_ interesting. Now, however, I am reborn."

Gaster spread his arms out wide for the human and his successor to fully behold him, his laughter only increasing in volume.

"What do you two think? Looking good for having been spread across time and space, no?"

Frisk noticed that as he spoke his hands seemed to rapidly morph in shape, becoming various symbols as if in a strange kind of sign language to match what he was saying. In fact, they closely resembled the unintelligible font on the blueprints in Sans' secret workshop. They figured that Gaster had been the one to write them.

Alphys' expression was a combination of joy, shock, and worry.

"You're… it's you! O-oh my god, I can't believe you're here! What happened to you? Where did you go for the last- what, twenty years?!"

He smiled warmly at her, his intimidating appearance fading somewhat.

"Hello, Alphys… or should I say Doctor Alphys? Congratulations on your promotion, I knew you had the potential!"

She blushed at the praise but looked down in shame.

"I-I've done something horrible, though…"

"Yes, I'm aware. But the blame is not entirely on you, my dear. Were it not my designs that inspired you to follow this experiment? You merely continued on from my own lack of knowledge. Ah… I should answer your previous questions."

The former Royal Scientist folded his arms behind his back, as his pupils began glowing bright purple.

"There is much to do, so I shall keep this brief. You will see what I saw long ago…"

 **Twenty one years earlier…**

 _"Doctor Gaster, please wait!" the young Alphys cried, running after him and trying to keep up on her stumpy legs. For a twelve-year-old girl she was a truly brilliant monster, but it was seeing her enthusiasm to learn and help that really brought a smile to the old skeleton's face. He had no doubt that one day she'd make a great successor to him._

 _"Oh? What seems to be troubling you?"_

 _"Y-you forgot this on your desk. Here, put it on!"_

 _She pushed a silver badge- his identification as the Royal Scientist- into his hands. Gaster chuckled to himself and pinned it to the front of his lab coat, giving her a soft pat on the head._

 _"I should try harder to remember this…"_

 _Alphys pouted. "Uh huh, you always forget your badge on the desk."_

 _"Indeed… thank you for your help today, you can go home now. I assume you'll be here bright and early tomorrow?"_

 _"Like always! Bye, Doctor!"_

 _She ran out of the lab to return to her home in western Hotland. Gaster's smile faded, becoming bittersweet at seeing her go. It would likely be the last time she saw him for a very long time, if things were to go according to plan. He couldn't bring himself to tell her that he'd be gone, even if he should have._

 _"…be strong, little one."_

 _His oldest son, who also happened to be a lab assistant, was waiting in the main chamber._

 _"are you sure about this?" Sans asked. "what if you don't come back, or you somehow get split wrong?"_

 _Gaster was about to attempt something that no other monster could ever dream of- projecting himself across time and space. If he could pull it off, there was a possibility that he'd be able to find a timeline where the monsters destroyed the Barrier, and subsequently replicate the strategy they'd used._

 _"I am well aware of the risks, son. But you must understand that this is for the good of all monsterkind."_

 _"let me go! i can do it!"_

 _He shook his head. "No. If anything were to happen to you, Papyrus would be devastated. He is far more attached to you than to me, you know."_

 _His younger son was just a baby skeleton then, and currently fast asleep. Truthfully, calling either Sans or Papyrus his sons would be stretching the definition of the word. "Clone" was perhaps more accurate, as they'd been formed from chunks of bone he'd cut out of his hands. Regardless, he loved them both dearly. His plan to find a way past the Barrier was devoted mostly to those two._

 _"will… will i forget about you?"_

 _Gaster sighed._

 _"Your memories of me shouldn't vanish, but rather become… hazy, assuming my hypothesis is correct. That's why I've asked you to store away that photo album and one of my spare lab coats, do you understand? It's to help keep your recollection as clear as possible once I'm beyond this dimension."_

 _He had another idea, removing the "Royal Scientist" badge from his coat and tossing it to Sans._

 _"Keep that as well."_

 _"dad…"_

 _Gaster approached his son, kneeling down to wrap him in a hug._

 _"I admit, I don't know how long I'll be gone. Will you take care of Papyrus for me? You've grown into a fine young skeleton, I think I can trust you."_

 _Sans was tearing up._

 _"y-yeah, i will… i promise… even though i hate making promises, i'll m-make an exception here…"_

 _"Very good. Now, listen closely. You must not let your concentration waver, even for a moment, or else I may be irreversibly harmed. Stay focused…"_

 _Nodding, Sans backed away from him and held out a hand. Gaster's soul, within his body, turned blue. His plan was to have this anchor his physical form in the present time, while his consciousness could freely explore time and space._

 _"ready."_

 _"Commencing experiment… NOW!"_

 _All at once, Sans telekinetically yanked down on Gaster's soul and tried to teleport him, while the Royal Scientist used his own teleportation ability. The conflicting spatial techniques caused him extraordinary pain, and for a moment he wasn't sure if he would even survive. But survive he did._


	59. Chapter 56: Through Time and Space

Chapter 56: Through Time and Space

 _For what seemed like an eternity, Gaster felt as though he were falling through endless shadows, yet at the same time he couldn't feel much of anything at all. His body was gone, his strength was gone, perhaps even his life was gone… but he refused to let himself give up. He concentrated as hard as he could and suddenly found himself staring at a vortex of bright, hazy colors. Intrigued, he willed his own consciousness to move toward it._

 _When Gaster drew near, a sudden force pulled on him. He was abruptly sucked into the colorful haze and dropped from what felt like a very high distance until he landed on something soft and yellow. Struggling to get up, he realized that it was a bed of golden flowers, specifically the ones growing in King Asgore's throne room. However, they seemed much taller than he remembered, coming up to eye level. It was then that Gaster noticed his own body. He was no longer a skeleton, but now some short lizard creature with gray scales and no arms. It was as if what little magic of his body he'd taken with him had opted to take on a form that would allow him to exist on a physical level. The sensation of losing two limbs and suddenly having a flexible tail (not to mention an entirely new bodily composition) was almost frighteningly unfamiliar._

 _Nevertheless, he stayed focused. Gaster began stumbling through the flowers on his short legs, occasionally losing balance and falling onto his face with a painful thud._

 _"Damn this body… I already miss having arms."_

 _Remembering the task at hand, he walked through the throne room to the Barrier. It wasn't broken, to his dismay, so he decided to inspect his surroundings more. A brisk walk up to Asgore's house (careful to avoid being spotted and seen as an intruder) and a look at his calendar seemed to indicate the latter was true; it was marked as being two months after his experiment with Sans. Gaster teleported out of the castle- luckily, that ability hadn't been lost and came to him just as naturally as before- to continue investigating with his new body._

 _Instead of going to a new location, however, he was brought back to that vortex of colors from before. More "openings" could be seen, and he wondered if by separating his soul from his physical body he could no longer teleport within a single world. Gaster then realized the implications of what he'd just thought._

 _"A single world… then… have I succeeded?"_

 _Without hesitation he rushed into another colorful entrance and found himself directly inside Asgore's home. He could hear him and the Queen speaking nearby, while their two children were off doing something else. If this was a time when Chara and Asriel were still alive, then Gaster felt his heart swell at the thought that he'd actually managed to transcend timelines. But this one wouldn't do, his objective was to be able to destroy the Barrier where HE had come from. With that, he began to explore time and space._

 _Admittedly, he was disappointed to learn that his ability had a large limitation. Each of the hundreds of timelines Gaster teleported into dropped him at a random location in the underground, so seeing anything beyond the Barrier was apparently impossible. The longer he spent observing each timeline and the subtle (or occasionally unsubtle) differences between them, however, the less that bothered him. He was fascinated to see what had changed with each._

 _In some timelines, the humans who'd fallen underground had managed to escape, in others there were no humans at all other than Chara. One particularly unpleasant teleport led Gaster to a time in which a whole army of humans descended into the underground to wipe out the monsters, and he was in no hurry to return there to say the least. There were times where the whole kingdom was populated by murderous, hate-ridden monsters and times where various significant people had flipped their positions in life, strangely. The only constant seemed to be that Gaster himself had apparently ceased to exist in the timelines._

 _It was actually quite the depressing sight. Nobody paid much mind to his disappearance save for those closest to him and moved on with their lives as normal. This outcome wasn't unexpected, but he still felt a sense of despair. He soon learned, in his travels, to never try speaking to anyone, as very few would believe that the short gray lizard monster was actually Doctor Wing Ding Gaster._

 _Naturally, one of the first things he did was check on his sons. Sans, in most of the timelines he visited, had tried to find a solution to the Barrier problem but failed enough to become astoundingly apathetic about ever escaping, eventually just resorting to Asgore's plan to kill humans who entered the underground. His usual wide grin didn't fool Gaster; Sans was actually quite depressed and felt utterly hopeless. The one thing he did succeed at was fine-tuning his father's design of a "Gaster Blaster," a powerful laser cannon meant as a defensive measure. It seemed like his only motivation in life was to take care of Papyrus, who'd grown into a VERY tall skeleton with (thankfully) a much better disposition. He was eccentric and proud, always seeking an adventure. Gaster dearly wished that he could be there for his two sons, but finding a way out of the underground for their sakes was still his top priority._

 _The vast majority of timelines had Alphys grow up to become the next Royal Scientist and continue his studies from where he'd left off. Gaster was astounded to see her make such progress; in truth he had been practically stumped by the dilemma and was planning to discontinue the research. But Alphys had pressed onward, eventually perfecting his Determination Extractor._

 _Two figures particularly caught Gaster's attention as he jumped from timeline to timeline. The first was, in fact, a creation of Alphys: a golden flower that seemed to bend time and space around it. He had total control over any timeline in which he existed, using a power called Determination to change fate as he saw fit. "Flowey" could befriend every monster in the underground, then reset to a point before he knew any of them and start killing all who he met in the blink of an eye with no remorse whatsoever. He seemed hell-bent on obtaining the human souls from Asgore for his own devious plans, but was never successful no matter what he tried._

 _The second figure he noticed was a human child, the eighth to enter the Monster Kingdom. Their Determination was exponentially stronger than Flowey's, and as a result could use the power to reset that previously belonged to him. Gaster noticed a peculiar resemblance between this human and Chara- they seemed to share a fashion sense, having similar hairstyles and both wearing striped shirts- but eventually concluded that it was entirely coincidental. It was the new human's actions that truly concerned him._

 _Frisk, as they were apparently named, was wholly unpredictable in each timeline. In one they would make a beeline for the Barrier and fight past anyone who got in their way, in others they would actively hunt down and slaughter each and every monster in the underground for no apparent reason other than a twisted sense of fun. Sometimes they'd befriend the monsters and decide to live among them, but there was no clear majority of "good" or "evil" timelines for Frisk._

 _Gaster eventually found the timeline he'd come from- he felt a particular pull toward it- and noticed that Frisk too was seeking out a "better ending" for the Monster Kingdom. While he could definitely support such an intention, Gaster was suspicious. There was always the possibility that Frisk could be leading the monsters into a trap outside on Mount Ebott, or that they'd get bored of the pacifist route and begin killing everyone all over again._

 _He met Frisk in Waterfall during that timeline, but realized that the best place to truly judge them for himself would be near the end of their journey. After teleporting away (and arduously searching for that timeline again), Gaster waited in the lower laboratory for them to arrive. He'd gathered everything he needed to recreate his original body, and was ready to confront them._

 _Gaster had to know if their intentions were sincere._

He finished telepathically showing Alphys and Frisk his memories, leaving both of them in stunned silence.

"The fate of this timeline is at stake," he said quietly. "I have returned to see how events play out. If you proceed, Frisk, you will either find the answer to our problems... or you will let us all down."

The power control system was behind him, still deactivated.

"You are able to reset to a point before entering this laboratory, no? If you so wish, you can return there and continue on toward Asgore's castle to escape through the Barrier again."

Frisk shook their head.

"No. I'm going to stay here and help everyone get to the surface. Monsters don't deserve to be trapped underground, and I won't let anything stop me!"

Gaster's eyes flashed purple again, and they suddenly had a strange vision. They were aboveground with their friends, all of whom seemed enamored with the surface world. Frisk too had a wide smile, thrilled to be there with the people who genuinely cared about them.

"That is the ending you seek. Your desire for a happy life for monsters is admirable… but will you see it through to the end?"

"Absolutely."

He smiled.

"So you say. In that case, I will have to see your resolve firsthand. To reactivate the elevator out of this laboratory, you must reach the mechanism behind me. This will be a test of your will. Are you ready?"

Frisk nodded firmly, clenching their fists. They'd come so far across their travels, and they refused to let anything stop them. Alphys backed away toward the exit of the room.

"I-I'll go prepare the Amalgamates to leave… I know you can do it, Frisk! Good luck!"

With her gone, Gaster raised both his arms as if preparing to conduct a symphony. Bright purple magic energy sparked around his skeletal hands.

"You claim you won't be deterred? Very well, then. I shall hold nothing back. Come! Show me the true power of your Determination!"

[SAVE FILE UPDATED]

 **Author's Note: The time has finally come! Including Gaster as the boss fight of the True Lab was actually a decision I made pretty early on.**

 **Oh yeah, on another note. I've started work on a new story: a** ** _Cave Story_** **, that is. Yes, it's an adaptation of the original underground romp through a land of monsters! :D**

 **The first chapter of that will be posted on the same day as this story's next update, so be sure to look for it if you're interested! And don't worry, it won't take time out of the updates for Among Monsters. With that, I will see you all next time for the conclusion of Part 6!**


	60. Chapter 57: Gaster, Royal Scientist

Chapter 57: Gaster, Royal Scientist

As the battle began, Frisk's soul emerged and identified their opponent. "Wing Ding Gaster" released the energy he'd been charging in his hands, which manifested as a storm of bone projectiles. They seemed to home in on the human, who responded by drawing their frying pan and using it to swat them away. Frisk had practically become a monster-dodging professional by that point and was able to avoid harm altogether. Knowing their objective was to make it past him, the human began shuffling forward and prepared for him to attack again.

Gaster's fingers curled inwards and glowed blue, whereupon their soul changed to be the same color and floated close to the ground like it had with Papyrus. Frisk was anticipating a line of low bones, but was suddenly launched into the air by the former Royal Scientist. Apparently able to manipulate gravity, Gaster threw them up at the ceiling of the power room, where they could now stand upside down. It didn't feel nauseating, but was certainly an uncomfortable experience. Not only were they too high up to reach the control panel, they also had the impression that he could bring them crashing onto the ground at any moment.

He sent another wave of bones at them which embedded in the ceiling upon missing. Frisk jumped as hard as they could but remained stuck in the altered gravity. Gaster swung his hand downward, and (just as they'd feared) the human was hurled back onto the floor, landing with a painful thud. The ground beneath them rumbled, causing Frisk to impulsively jump again. A group of sharp-looking bones sprang up from where they'd just been standing, but fortunately couldn't reach them in the air. They landed in a roll, then got up and rushed at Gaster with their frying pan ready. Their progress was abruptly stopped when a previously-unseen bone struck them across the back of the head, making Frisk stumble and fall. Gaster, smirking, psychically pushed them backwards away from him.

"I'm afraid you will have to try harder than that. There is potential in you, I know it! Show me!"

Frisk got back up and held the frying pan out in front of them, then began to chop through his next few bones as if their tool were an axe. His eyes narrowed at their persistence and flashed purple again. Gaster swept his hands in a wide circle, causing Frisk to have another vision. They were standing in the golden-lit hallway where Sans had judged them, but now something was chillingly different.

Their soul showed its own information- Level of Violence at 19 with hundreds of 'Execution Points.' They weren't sure what was going on, but guessed that Gaster was showing them what things would be like if they'd killed all of the monsters. Well, almost all of the monsters. Sans was before them, his face locked in some mixed expression of tranquility and loathing. It was actually quite unnerving to see him with such a hostile look on his face.

Sans said nothing at all, merely glaring at the human as he unleashed one of the most devastating attacks they'd encountered throughout their travels. His laziness hid a truly terrifying power, and the incoming hurricane of sharp bones was enough to drain Frisk's soul of HP in seconds, leaving them at just one left. They reached for their bag, but Sans (who seemed to have the same gravity powers as Gaster) flicked his hand sideways and dragged them through the air toward him, grimly smiling.

"you don't know what you're gettin' into, kid. and now… you're gonna have a really bad time."

He threw them onto the floor at his feet, standing above the injured human. They didn't bother trying to convince him to stop fighting, as with their Level of Violence as high as it was he clearly was in no merciful mood. Sans spawned another bone and pointed it directly at Frisk's soul, closing the distance quickly.

"see you around… you dirty brother killer."

They almost felt physical pain at the thought that, in whatever timeline Gaster placed them in, they'd actually killed Papyrus. If their LOVE was any indication, the killings didn't stop there. Toriel… Undyne… Mettaton… Alphys… Monster Kid… for all Frisk knew, each and every one of their friends had violently died at their hands.

"This… this isn't happening!"

"oh, it's happening all right. and you're-"

"NO!" they shouted. "This isn't real!"

All of a sudden Frisk was standing in the laboratory's power room again, with their soul showing its true statistics. LOVE 1, EXP 0, HP 20/20. They felt immense relief at having escaped the illusion. Gaster, still standing in the middle of the room, panted heavily. It seemed that whatever technique he'd just used had taken a lot out of him.

"I-impressive… but don't think you've won! I still have more tricks up my sleeves!"

With his illusion of Sans (Frisk made a mental note to ask if he really was that powerful later) defeated, the skeletal doctor resorted to a different tactic. The holes in his palms concentrated a bright blue energy between them, shooting out sparks that were drawn to Frisk's metal frying pan. They threw it aside quickly, not wanting to be shocked. Gaster didn't stop using that attack, however, and scored several hits on their soul.

 _"Crap, I have to think of something…"_ they thought. _"Wait a minute, if the shocks are attracted to metal-"_

Sidestepping another lightning bolt, Frisk kicked the frying pan. It skidded along the floor toward him, bringing Gaster's attack with it. He seemed to laugh and stopped using that particular technique.

"A clever tactic! What weapon shall you use next, I wonder?"

"I'm not using a weapon! I'm not gonna risk hurting you."

"Ha ha ha ha… your spirit remains strong. I respect that, but this is far from over!"

The electricity having faded from his hands, he made an odd gesture with his fingers. Frisk steeled themselves for his next move as bright fireballs ignited and hung in midair. Gaster thrust a hand forward, launching one of the scorching projectiles toward them. At least, it was intended to go that way. The human watched in confusion as it veered off to the side and struck a wall, coming nowhere near them. Several more were thrown just as inaccurately, and while one did manage to almost come close to hitting its mark, that seemed to be a fluke.

"What are you doing?"

"Damn, I never was very skilled with those…" Gaster muttered under his breath. The fireballs vanished from his grip shortly after his lousy attempt to use them.

His eyes glowed once more, only for his illusory powers to have no effect as Frisk's soul pulsed with Determination. The doctor's rather miserable attack beforehand had only increased their confidence, and from the look on his face he knew it.

"How did you- hmph, fine then! I can see I'll have to resort to my special attack. GASTER BLASTER!"

The very air around them seemed to violently shake as Gaster magically conjured up a large white device resembling a dragon skull- actually, it looked quite a lot like the "G-Blaster" they'd seen in Sans' workshop, perhaps being of the same design.

"Take THIS!"

Frisk braced themselves for anything as the Gaster Blaster (they figured it was called that) opened its mouth and roared. A wide beam of white energy fired at the human, scorching the laboratory's floor on contact. They ran in a serpentine pattern toward Gaster as his contraption shot laser after laser, occasionally managing to hit their soul and dealing significant damage. The doctor himself seemed to be growing tired from the fight and resorted to levitating Frisk in place off the ground so they couldn't move. His Blaster threateningly hovered before them.

"You've fought well, but… I'm afraid you'll have to try again- what?!"

Their soul emanated such an astounding degree of energy that the human broke out of Gaster's gravity manipulation, softly landing on the floor in front of him. He was visibly stunned.

"Like I said, I won't let anything get in my way. I WILL save my friends."

He ceased attacking at last and smiled down at Frisk.

"…well done, human. You've managed to even surprise me. There's not a doubt in my mind that you can succeed now. But I must ask… what are you planning to do?"

Truthfully, they had no idea. Flowey had suggested visiting Alphys, but beyond that had offered no advice.

"I think… the best thing to do would be to go see Asgore," they answered. "Maybe we can try attacking the Barrier together if he absorbs all the souls, then we'll be able to destroy it."

Gaster mulled over the idea as he reactivated the laboratory's power, and with it the elevator out.

"Hm… that may work. I'm eager to see what happens. Good luck, Frisk."

"What about you? Where are you going?"

He had a shaky smile.

"…to see my sons again. It's been far too long. Farewell."

With that, he teleported away. Frisk made their way out of the lower laboratory (now empty because Alphys had taken the Amalgamates out the moment the power returned) with a growing sense of satisfaction. After all this time, the end of their journey was in sight. Taking the slice of Toriel's pie out of their bag, they happily bit into it as they walked back to Asgore's castle. Things were looking up for them.

 **End of Part Six**

 **Author's Note: We've reached the final stretch! It's been a blast writing this, and I hope the additions I've made to the story were interesting enough. Thanks so much for sticking with me throughout. :)**

 **By the way, the first chapter of the Cave Story adaptation I mentioned is getting posted soon after this! I'm really excited to work on that one too, so if anyone's willing to read it that would be awesome. It's called _A Tale in the Caverns_ , so go check it out if you're a fan of that game too.  
**

 **Either way, I'll see you all next time for Part 7: Hopes and Dreams!**


	61. Chapter 58: Reunited

**Part Seven: Hopes and Dreams**

 **Author's Note: The end is in sight! I also uploaded the second chapter of my Cave Story adaptation, if anyone's interested. But enough plugging, on we go!**

Chapter 58: Reunited

As Frisk walked through the winding corridors of Asgore's castle again (having traveled there by way of River Person's boat and the elevators in the Core), they couldn't help but feel a sense of unease. While they had only a slight doubt that their plan would work, for some reason an oppressive weight sat on their mind. It was as if a massive threat was looming overhead, but what exactly was so threatening seemed unclear. Flowey- wherever he was- had offered them help to get a "better ending," Alphys was ready to confess her actions in the laboratory and try to redeem herself, and Asgore would hopefully be willing to cooperate.

They did their best to shake off the apprehension, being mostly successful. After such a long journey, worrying now wouldn't make anything better. Frisk resolutely marched back to the room with the Barrier, where the King was already waiting. He offered them a tiny smile, thinly veiling the true sadness he felt inside at having to fight.

"…so, you have returned. It is time to settle this."

Frisk's soul appeared before them as the containers with those of the previous six humans rose from the ground again.

"Asgore, hold on-"

He cut them off, readying his large trident.

"Please, don't make this harder for either of us than it needs to be… goodbye."

The King raised his arms to strike, and for a moment they feared that avoiding a battle with him was impossible. That is, until a large fireball tore through the air from somewhere behind them and slammed into Asgore. He was knocked backwards, landing hard on the floor. Frisk turned around to see where it had come from, and a feeling of delight and mild confusion arose within them at the sight of a familiar face.

"What an awful creature, tormenting such a poor, innocent youth…"

Standing in the doorway was a tall goat monster with white fur and a purple dress, a cold expression etched into her visage. It softened upon making eye contact with the human, however.

"Ah, do not be afraid, little one! It is I, your friend and guardian…"

"Toriel!" they said happily. Her motherly and slightly patronizing attitude didn't seem to have changed much, but after more than a week apart from her Frisk had grown to almost miss it. "What are you doing here?"

"At first I thought I would let you embark your adventure alone, but I simply couldn't stop worrying… after about three days I decided to follow you. Now, at last, I've caught up. It was rather difficult staying out of sight, though. I did not want to be recognized for, ah, personal reasons…"

"I know why, 'your majesty,'" Frisk commented. She didn't seem that surprised hearing they'd learned the truth about her. "It's so nice to see you anyway!"

Toriel smiled, though it was a bit weak. "Your journey must have been treacherous… and ultimately, would burden you with a terrible decision. To leave, you would have to take the life of another person."

"Yeah, but I've decided I'm not going to. It's not right for me to steal a soul just to escape, then I'd leave everyone stuck here. Besides, I've made a lot of great friends! I'm sure you'll like them."

Asgore sat up with a groan, rubbing his forehead. He didn't seem to have taken much damage from Toriel's blast.

"Ugh… Tori…? Is that you? I can't believe it, you came back…"

Her face went stone cold again.

"Do not 'Tori' me, Dreemurr! You pathetic whelp. Hiding in your castle and meekly hoping for humans to never come down here has only added to your deplorability! If you really wanted to free monsters, you could have passed through the Barrier after obtaining one soul, taken six more from the humans on the surface, and come back to finish the job. Instead, you have allowed everyone to live here in despair… what do you have to say for yourself?"

"…Tori, you're right… I truly am pathetic. But, do you think we could at least be friends again?"

The icy stare Toriel shot at Asgore promptly shut him up. His head drooped a bit. Frisk was about to speak, but was interrupted by yet another voice.

"Ngggahhhhh! Asgore! Frisk! Don't fight each other!"

Undyne rushed into the room, stopping short upon getting a look at the former Queen. She clearly didn't personally recognize Toriel, but seemed to make the connection that both she and Asgore were familiar with one another.

"Oh, hello there! I am Toriel, are you a friend of the human? It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"Uh, yeah! Same!"

Walking to Asgore's side, she put an arm around his shoulder.

"Hey, is that your ex? Jeez. That's rough, buddy."

The surprise visitors didn't stop there, as Alphys was hot on Undyne's heels. She took one glance at Toriel and froze.

 _"There's two of them?!"_ she mouthed to Frisk, who just shrugged. Alphys moved to stand beside Asgore and Undyne, and within seconds Papyrus arrived behind her.

"HEY! NOBODY FIGHT ANYONE, OR ELSE I'LL BE FORCED! TO ASK UNDYNE FOR HELP!"

Toriel's smile only grew as more of Frisk's friends showed up.

"Greetings!"

"OH, HELLO YOUR MAJESTY!"

Papyrus unsubtly began whispering to the human.

"PSST, DID ASGORE SHAVE? AND…" he noticed the King standing a few yards away. "CLONE HIMSELF?"

Gaster stepped into the room behind him, evidently having reunited with his sons at last. Both skeletons looked quite happy in each other's presence. Toriel and Asgore gasped loudly upon seeing him, to which he responded with a quiet chuckle.

"Greetings, your majesties… I've returned."

"Doctor!" Asgore said aloud. "It's… is that really you?!"

He nodded, smiling.

"Indeed it is. Hello to you too, Queen Toriel. I promise to explain everything at another time, but for now I think our focus is on young Frisk. My older son should be along any moment now…"

Gaster and Papyrus stood to the side as, sure enough, Sans casually strolled in.

"hey guys, what's up? hope i didn't miss the fun."

As he spoke, Frisk noticed Toriel's expression change to one of surprise. She slowly approached the short skeleton.

"Your voice… excuse me, but I believe we may already know each other?"

His permanent grin widened and he winked.

"oh hey, i recognize your voice too… you're the lady from behind the snowdin door, aren'tcha?"

"Indeed! My name is Toriel, it is lovely to meet you at last!"

"i'm sans. the honor's all mine. and this is papyrus, my bro i've told ya about."

She beamed at him.

"Oh yes, I've heard so much about you! Greetings, Papyrus!"

"WOWIE… I CAN'T BELIEVE THE KING'S CLONE KNOWS WHO I AM! THIS MUST BE THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE!"

His good mood seemed to all but vaporize as Toriel and Sans began energetically sharing more bad puns like they had through the door, giggling and even blushing a bit in each other's presence. Frisk assumed that neither of them had ever expected to actually meet in person, so a certain awkwardness was understandable. Gaster watched them with a gentle smile, proud to see his sons having grown up well.

"Cheer up, Asgore," Undyne said in an effort to comfort him after his rejection. "There are plenty of fish in the sea! It'll be okay."

"Y-yeah, she's right about that fish thing," Alphys added. "Sometimes you just have to stop going for furry Boss Monsters and… j-just get to know a really cute fish?"

That earned curious looks from Undyne and the King.

"It's a figure of speech…"

Undyne laughed.

"Well, I like it! You know just what to say sometimes, Alphys!"

 **"Oh my GOD!"** Mettaton's voice blared as he practically waltzed into the room, still in his more human-like body and holding a camera. **"Will you two just smooch already?! The audience is dying for some romantic tension!"**

The fish monster growled.

"Hey, shut up! The nerve of that guy, right?"

Alphys, on the other hand, appeared to be working up her nerve.

"…n-no, let's do it… please?"

"Uh? Okay? If you want? Don't hold anything back!"

Blushing quite hard, the two got closer to each other (with Undyne leaning down because the Royal Scientist was about half her height) but stopped as Toriel jumped between them.

"Not in front of Frisk!" she cried. They wouldn't have minded, admittedly, but just having their friends here was already enough to keep them satisfied. Mettaton, disappointed that Undyne and Alphys wouldn't be kissing yet, stood beside them instead. The three skeletons joined them as well. Even Asgore looked down at Frisk with a kind smile.

"My child," Toriel continued, "it seems you will have to stay here for a while."

"That's fine by me, as long as I can be with you guys. We're together at last, and I'd be happy to live with you all!"

Alphys, as if remembering something, turned toward Papyrus.

"Hey, that reminds me… it was you who gathered us all here, right? Except, um, Toriel. Anyway, if I got here before you did, how'd you know to call everyone?"

"OH, IT WAS QUITE SIMPLE! LET'S JUST SAY… A TINY FLOWER HELPED ME DO IT!"

Frisk, Alphys, Sans, and Gaster appeared to simultaneously jerk in his direction.

"a tiny flower?" his brother asked, as if making sure he wasn't hearing things.

"Oh no…" Gaster and Alphys whispered together.

A very thick vine suddenly whipped through the room, tightly wrapping up all eight of Frisk's companions and holding them in the air in what looked like a very unpleasant grip.

Flowey sprouted between them and the monsters with a vicious grin. The six human souls Asgore had collected were, once again, floating in a circle around him.


	62. Chapter 59: Don't Give Up!

Chapter 59: Don't Give Up!

"You IDIOTS," Flowey cackled. "While you were all having your little pow-wow… I took the human souls right under your stinking noses! And now, I'll be able to take all of your monster souls as well!"

He shook them around playfully with his large vine and leered at Frisk, who looked completely horrified.

"Wanna know what the best part is? It's all your fault. You MADE them love you. You cared about them, you encouraged them, and eventually they all supported your ambitions. Without that, they wouldn't have come here, and they wouldn't have given me the distraction I needed! Now, with human and monster souls together… I will achieve my _true_ form. Great job, kid! You've REALLY helped me out!"

Feeling a crushing sense of despair, they tried pleading with him.

"Why, Flowey? Why are you still doing this? What could be worth keeping everyone's happiness away?"

"Hee hee hee… why, you ask? You don't get it, do you?! This is all just a game between you and me! If you leave the underground satisfied with what you've done, you'll 'win' the game. If you 'win,' you won't want to 'play' with me anymore. And that just wouldn't be any fun at all! What would I do then?"

Frisk had no idea what he was talking about and wondered if he was just completely out of his mind.

"But no, this game of ours is NEVER going to end. I'll hold victory right in front of you, then yank it away every time."

An unpleasant smirk came over the twisted flower's face.

"Hey, listen… if by some miracle you do defeat me, I'll give you your 'happy ending.' I'll give you your friends back and destroy the Barrier. But that won't happen, get it? I'm going to keep you stuck here…"

They found themselves unable to move as Flowey spawned a ring of his usual Friendliness Pellets around their soul, striking it over and over again with shrieks of laughter.

 ** _"EVEN IF IT MEANS KILLING YOU A MILLION TIMES!"_**

Frisk's soul was left at 1/20 HP, with them helpless against the final wave of pellets. However, at the last second a group of fireballs appeared surrounding them and destroyed the attack. Flowey glared up at Toriel, who feebly cried out to the human.

"Do not be afraid, little one… no matter what happens, we will always be here to protect you!"

They felt their HP slowly begin to regenerate. The murderous flower attempted to attack again, but a thrown magic spear and bone prevented him from going through with it.

"THAT'S RIGHT, HUMAN! YOU CAN WIN! JUST DO WHAT I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WOULD DO… BELIEVE IN YOU!"

"Yeah! If you got past me, you can do anything! We're with you all the way!" Undyne cheered them on.

Growing more and more visibly frustrated, Flowey launched waves of Friendliness Pellets, all of which were destroyed by more magic attacks from their friends.

"huh? you haven't beaten this guy already? c'mon, he's got nothin' on you." Sans encouraged.

Gaster was smiling firmly.

"Your Determination has taken you far, child… show him how strong you are!"

"T-technically," Alphys stammered from the pain of being gripped in the vine, "it's not possible for you to beat him. But you've surprised us all, and I know you can pull through!"

 **"Go on, darling!** **The monsters across the underground are all rooting for you! You're the star of the show now!"** chimed Mettaton.

"For the good of humans and monsters," Asgore finished, "you must stay determined! All our hopes rest on you!"

Flowey looked like he was going to say something, having a furious expression. He couldn't get a word out before a large group of monsters charged into the Barrier room, including Monster Kid, Napstablook, Muffet, Grillby, Shyren, Gerson, the dogs from the Royal Guard, Mettaton's mercenaries, and quite a few more. All of them shouted their own encouragements, seeing Frisk's plight, and backed Flowey into a corner.

"We're with you too!

"Go get him, Frisk…"

"Yo, you can't give up yet!"

"Fight on, human!"

"We know you can win!"

"You've GOT to beat him!"

"Stay strong! You can do this!"

"We're going to help!"

"Let's do this together!"

Flowey looked utterly terrified, shrinking away from the approaching mob.

"Urrrgh… no! Unbelievable! T-this can't be happening! You… YOU…"

He then broke into a fiendishly wide smile.

"I can't believe you're all so STUPID!"

The whole room shook as the six human souls he possessed emitted a blinding flash of energy.

"ALL OF YOUR SOULS ARE MINE!"

When the light finally died down enough for Frisk to open their eyes, they realized that everyone who had just been there was gone. The Barrier shone vibrantly, throwing out all varieties of color, but their attention was hardly on it. Instead, Frisk was staring curiously at the only other resident of the room: a monster about double their height facing the other way. He seemed to be stretching out his arms and legs as if testing them.

"Finally… I was so tired of being a flower."

The monster turned around and locked his gaze with Frisk. He was a white-furred goatlike creature with floppy ears and very large horns, wearing a regal-looking black robe that came all the way down to his bare feet. The front was patterned with the Delta Rune, and sprouting from the robe's shoulders were pieces of metal armor ending in sharp tips. His most peculiar feature was what appeared to be a heart-shaped locket hanging from around his neck, identical to the one Frisk had found in Asgore's castle. His identity was easy to guess, even if he seemed to mistake theirs. He spoke in a voice sharply different from what they'd heard in the VHS tapes, now with a rumbling tone that echoed through the air.

"Howdy! Is that you, Chara?" the goat creature asked, staring down at the human. "It's me, your best friend. So nice to see you again."

Monster Prince Asriel Dreemurr, in the flesh.


	63. Chapter 60: Duel of Determination

Chapter 60: Duel of Determination

The first thing Frisk did, naturally, was have their soul identify Asriel. It pointed out that he possessed not only six human souls, but also those of every single monster within the underground, bar none. Attacking him was completely impossible.

As their eyes locked, the human steeled their nerves for what would be the final battle. Asriel raised both of his arms and unleashed a scorching twister of magical flames in their direction. He was smiling wickedly.

"Now that I'm back to normal," the Prince said darkly, "I don't care about destroying this world anymore. Now I just want to reset this little game. Once I defeat you and take full control of the timeline, I'm going to bring everything back to zero! Your progress… the friends and memories you've made… say goodbye to them, Chara!"

Frisk weaved between his fire attacks, feeling the strength pulsing through his soul. They resorted to using the frying pan as a defensive tool again, catching the fireballs and throwing them aside. Asriel just laughed.

"Trying to resist your best friend, are you?"

Charging some kind of magic between his paws, he hovered in the air above them. He thrust down his fingers and released several multicolored lightning bolts that gave off small shockwaves upon hitting the floor. Frisk, despite not being directly hit, could feel a stinging pain ripple through their body from the blast.

"Imagine the fun we'll have, doing this all over again!"

"Come back to your senses, Asriel!" they shouted to no avail.

The remaining energy in his hands took the shape of a pair of long, curved swords. He charged straight at them and swung wildly with the deadly-looking blades. Frisk drew their rusty dagger in a fruitless attempt to block, and their soul received several damaging slashes. Stumbling, they fell onto their back. Asriel took the opportunity to drop another lightning bolt on the dazed human, draining the rest of their soul's HP.

 _"I-I can't lose… I CAN'T lose!"_

The red heart tore in half and quivered in the air before them, only to put itself back together with how strong their will to live was. Frisk had fully mastered control over their Determination.

"Oh? You aren't dead? Ha ha ha, you continue to be full of surprises!"

They got to their feet and finally discarded the dusty pink tutu they'd been wearing since Waterfall. It would only hinder their mobility here. Holding up the frying pan again, Frisk swatted aside another fireball as it sped toward them. Asriel countered with such a swift combination of attacks that they could only make out a blur of glowing orange and blue energy. It was enough to drain their HP again, but just like it had moments earlier Frisk's soul reformed itself. They stared down the Prince with a defiant expression.

"I'm not going to let you win. You won't be resetting anything, and we're gonna escape!"

"That's where you're wrong, Chara," Asriel replied with a smirk. "We'll be reliving this moment quite a bit. And you know what the best part is? You'll DO it. You'll go through your whole adventure and lose to me again, and again, and again!"

He took another swipe at them with his swords, but Frisk was able to get out of the way.

"It's because you 'want a happy ending.' Because you 'love your friends' and will 'never give up for them.' Am I wrong?"

"You're right! And I won't stop until I _get_ that 'happy ending' for all monsters!"

Asriel magically conjured a large cannon and began rapidly firing small bullets at them. Frisk sustained a fair amount of damage but fought on, never forgetting why they were persisting in their efforts.

"Isn't that delicious?" he taunted. "Your Determination, the power that's let you get this far… it's gonna be your downfall! You'll endlessly try to beat me but fail every time!"

He drew from even more of his power and threw down enormous star-shaped magic blasts that caused tremors in the ground. Frisk struggled to stay on their feet.

"Why are you still fighting?" Asriel hissed. "Just give up already, Chara! What good do you think this is gonna do?!"

"Stop calling me Chara! That isn't my name!"

He was either ignoring them or simply unable to comprehend that they weren't his sister from long ago. Frisk recalled seeing in Gaster's vision that Chara bore an uncanny resemblance to them, which could have been the source of Asriel's delusion. Growling in frustration, he released more fireballs from one hand and lightning bolts from the other.

"I've just about had enough of this! GIVE. UP!"

"Never!"

Asriel smirked.

"I suppose I'll have to resort to more drastic measures. Very well, time to purge this timeline once and for all! Enjoy oblivion! HYPER GONER!"

He vanished from sight and was replaced by a massive white object that resembled a cross between a goat and dragon head. It let out a booming croak of a laugh and opened its mouth to a voracious degree. Frisk almost lost their balance as the Hyper Goner began inhaling. Time and space appeared to distort around the mouth, and everything around the human lost color before fading to complete blackness. They never let their willpower fail, though, and refused to let themselves disappear with the rest of it.

When Asriel reappeared, he was almost surprised to see them still standing on what- though not visible- was apparently solid ground.

"What? Even after that attack, you're not out of my way? Wow… you really ARE something special. But don't get cocky. Up until now, I've only been using a fraction of my real power. Let's see what good your Determination is against THIS!"

A vortex of rainbow light swirled around him, and Frisk could see his form changing once more. His head wasn't much different, but the rest of him looked nothing like his old self. Asriel's body had taken on a devilish appearance, with black spikes growing diagonally from his shoulders. His arms were similarly sharp and ended in large talons that sparked with magic. The transformation had cost him his legs, as in their place was some kind of pointed tail. Vibrant, glowing wings unfurled from behind his back with a span of almost thirty feet. In the center of his new body was a pulsating black heart- his soul. According to their soul, this form was known as "God of Hyperdeath."

"Urah hah hah hah… behold my true power!"

Asriel casually pointed a finger in Frisk's direction, upon which the ground below them seemed to explode and launched them through the air. They painfully landed on their side and staggered to their feet. His next attack directly hit their soul, effectively killing Frisk yet again. When the heart put itself back together once more, he just grinned.

"I can feel it… every time you die, your grip on this world slips away a little more. Your friends will begin to forget you soon, and eventually your life will end here, in a world where nobody recognizes you. Don't worry, that attitude will serve you well in your next life! How do you think I was as Flowey?!"

"I'm… I'm not going to give up…" Frisk groaned.

"No? Well then, I'll just MAKE you stop resisting!"

His soul flashed, and they found themselves completely unable to move. Frisk was helpless to him.

"Ha ha ha ha… come on, show me what good your Determination is now!"

Asriel was clearly in no hurry to further attack the human, instead content to watch them struggle against his telekinetic grasp. They couldn't move anything. With no other ideas for what to do, Frisk tried to reach their Save File and reset to before the battle. It didn't seem possible at the moment, but they kept attempting. Still, no matter how much effort they put in, their situation didn't change. Frisk almost whimpered sadly, but a slow realization was building in their mind. "Saving" their progress was impossible with Asriel being so powerful, yet they could faintly sense a familiar energy somewhere inside him. It was the soul power of monsters, _familiar_ monsters. Their friends...

Frisk had an idea upon sensing that.

 _"They're in there somewhere, aren't they? Maybe, with what little power I have left… I can 'Save' something else."_


	64. Chapter 61: Save the World

Chapter 61: Save the World

Frisk's soul flared with Determination and they broke free of Asriel's grip. Concentrating as hard as possible, they locked onto a trace of energy resonating within him. There was a flash of light, and the God of Hyperdeath disappeared. Standing before the human was Alphys and Mettaton, both their faces covered by white flames. Their previously red soul had turned yellow again, just like it had in Hotland.

 **"Time to burn, darling!"**

"I've got to keep lying… you hate me, don't you?"

The two were in a sort of trance and began attacking, with the robot throwing bombs and the Royal Scientist sending small electric orbs at them. Frisk dodged the projectiles without much difficulty; neither monster was nearly as threatening as Asriel.

"Alphys!" they called. "I know you're in there, listen to me! You're not a bad person, I can tell! I'm going to support you all the way!"

"All I do is hurt people…"

"No you don't! Please, don't shut me out like this!"

Her attacks slowed down, but Mettaton was just as aggressive.

 **"You've stolen my spotlight for too long! Now I'm going to put you in your place!"**

"Remember when we performed together in the Core? Or outside the spider cave? Think of all the people cheering us on! Think of how fun it was!"

 **"I'M the star here!"**

Frisk nodded at him.

"The star for all monsters! You're the one they look up to! Mettaton, Alphys, please come back to me!"

The white flames shrouding their faces abruptly vanished.

"No, wait! I'm not hopeless, my friends like me! And I like you too, Frisk!"

 **"…huh? Oh my, how could I have attacked you? Forgive me, I was out of my senses. Go get him, darling!"**

Both of them disappeared shortly after. Frisk concentrated again, this time calling forth Undyne and Kid. Their soul turned green in the fish woman's presence and gave them the same shield they'd used when fighting her back in Waterfall. The faces of both monsters, like Alphys' and Mettaton's, were veiled with fire.

"All humans must die! For the good of monsterkind, I challenge you!"

"Yeah, beat 'em up!"

She furiously launched magic spears at them, but couldn't land a single hit as Frisk put their shield to effective use.

"Undyne, you don't want to do this. We're friends, right? I want to see you again after this is all over, so we can all be happy. Remember when we cooked together? Wasn't that fun? Kid! I know you're in there, and I know we're friends! I can't wait to hang out on the surface world with you!"

"Shut up! You're our REAL enemy!"

"Go Undyne! No mercy!"

The fish monster jumped at them with her fist outstretched. Frisk, rather than dodge, met it head-on with their shield. She didn't seem to feel any pain but backed away nonetheless, beginning to recall their boldness.

"Please, let's not fight any more."

Kid reacted first, his voice wavering slightly. The trance was lifted off of him.

"Somethin' seems familiar… Undyne, wait a second! That's Frisk, don't kill them!"

"M-mercy is for the weak, damn it…"

They crossed their arms.

"It is not! I got past everyone in the underground without fighting!"

At that point, her memories returned and the haze covering her face disappeared.

"Well… some humans are okay, I guess! Don't give up, got it?!"

"Got it!"

"You can do it, yo!"

Undyne and Kid were gone, and Frisk sought out the energy of the skeletons' souls. Their own soul turned blue in "jump" mode. Papyrus, Sans, and Gaster spawned before them, all generating magic bone attacks.

"I MUST CAPTURE A HUMAN! THAT'S THE ONLY WAY THINGS WILL GET BETTER!"

"There is no hope left in the world…"

"just give up, kid. i did a long time ago."

Frisk didn't buy any of it for a moment, dodging and jumping over their bone projectiles. Sans was particularly difficult to avoid, and he managed to deal a fair amount of damage to them.

"How can you guys think it's hopeless?! You're all together again; there's going to be so much for you to see on the surface!"

"EVERYONE WILL LIKE ME ONCE YOU'VE BEEN CAPTURED!"

They firmly stared at Papyrus.

"What was that you said to me? 'Will anyone like me as sincerely as you?' Come on, we're not enemies! You and Sans are two of the first friends I ever made, doesn't that mean anything?"

"…"

"You are naïve, child."

Gaster manipulated gravity to throw Frisk into the air, while Sans rushed at them with a Gaster Blaster ready to fire. They landed hard at the latter's feet, thinking quickly.

"R-remember your promise to Toriel? You said you'd watch over any human coming through!

"i was a moron. i still _am_ one for thinking things will turn out okay."

Frisk rolled to the side as the Gaster Blaster released its stored energy onto the part of the floor they'd just been on.

"But things will turn out okay, you'll see! We'll all be happy together!"

"BROTHER…" Papyrus said quietly, beginning to break out of his trance. "ARE YOU SAD WITH YOURSELF? WHY HAVEN'T YOU SAID ANYTHING?"

"don't worry about it," he replied, still attacking Frisk.

"Stand aside, my son. This fight is too dangero-"

The tallest skeleton, free of Asriel's control, threw himself between his family and the human with his arms outstretched. Their attacks stopped immediately.

"DAD, SANS, OPEN YOUR EYES! LOOK AT THEM, THEY'RE NOT OUR ENEMY! THEY'VE BEEN KIND TO MONSTERS FOR THEIR ENTIRE JOURNEY! AND I KNOW THEY'LL BE ABLE TO WIN!"

"That is not possible," Gaster began again before getting cut off by Frisk.

"Yes it is! You showed it to me yourself, a happy ending for us all! Think about it, Doctor!"

He paused where he stood, a half-formed bone attack rapidly disappearing from his hands. The white flames around his face had, like Papyrus' also vanished.

"…I believe I remember now. Forgive me, child, I would never have attacked you on my own accord."

Sans, seeing how nice Frisk had been to him and his relatives, also seemed to have his memories come flooding back.

"nah, i'm rooting for ya, kid. make sure you win, alright?"

"I will. I promise."

The three skeletons were gone like the other souls they'd rescued, leaving Toriel and Asgore together.

"This is for your own good," the former intoned while the latter just sighed in shame. Both goat monsters unleashed waves of fireballs at the human, who cut their way through the attacks with the rusty dagger.

"You two were the main sources of hope for all of monsterkind… are you really just gonna give up like this?"

Asgore stabbed at them with his trident, but they jumped to the side before it could connect. Frisk ran up to him and, acting on impulse, gave the King a hug on his lower torso (he was still much taller than them). He was caught off guard and didn't move a muscle.

"You're not a bad person… and I'm not going to hurt you, no matter what. Monsters and humans should try to get along, right?"

"You little fool," Toriel hissed as she threw another fire attack. "There is no escape for any of us. Nobody will ever leave!"

The human didn't let what she was saying get to them.

"That isn't true, I can find a way. Once we're out, I think I want to stay with you and all the other monsters. Maybe you can show me how to make your pie!"

A recollection appeared to strike her, and Toriel stopped in her tracks. Asgore was no longer attacking, but merely stared at Frisk. They looked between the divorced King and Queen with a smile.

"Imagine… you'll finally get to see the surface world… or even AGAIN, if you've lived as long as I think you have! I'll show everyone around!"

"…hm? Oh my goodness, what have I done?" Toriel cried upon snapping out of her trance and seeing the slight burns across Frisk' clothes. "F-forgive me, my child!"

Asgore was back to normal as well, and gave them an apologetic but sheepish stare. The human, meanwhile, was highly unconcerned about the fight they'd just gone through and was instead delighted that their friends were saved from Asriel's clutches.

Though… was he truly evil, or just mislead? Frisk didn't have much time to ponder that as Toriel and Asgore disappeared. They locked onto the strong non-monster source resonating within the God of Hyperdeath: the human souls. Thankfully, they remembered Frisk and had no interest in battling.

"You've been so brave, child," Soul of Integrity said.

"I'm not going to let anything stop me from saving them all."

Soul of Justice laughed. "I reckon they're all lucky ta have ya standin' up for them."

"I second that," Soul of Perseverance agreed. "Now, as for our current situation…"

It was Soul of Bravery who continued. "Your efforts to save your friends have reduced Asriel's magical potential. The time has come for us to overthrow him!"

"Just like when he was Flowey!" Soul of Patience cheered in response.

Frisk, however, didn't want that to happen.

"Wait, stop! Don't do anything!"

"Oh?" Soul of Kindness asked. "Why not?"

They just smirked.

"I think I have a better idea…"

Looking among one another, the souls decided to trust Frisk and vanished. The lone human stood once again before Asriel's monstrous body, and he had a loathesome expression.

Fortunately, they knew the perfect solution to the entire conflict.


	65. Chapter 62: The Angel

Chaper 62: The Angel

Frisk could feel the energy of their friends' souls- as well as the souls of all monsters in general- strongly resonating within the God of Hyperdeath. They felt more confident than they ever had in their entire life knowing that all of monsterkind was counting on them to save the day. There was only one thing to be done now… one more person to save.

"Asriel!" they shouted, concentrating their Determination on his soul energy.

An abrupt change came over the Prince's face. He no longer looked proud and menacing but unnerved, shocked, and even a bit worried.

"Huh? W-what are you doing, Chara?!"

Frisk watched as he tried to throw a magic blast, but was so shaken up that the attack went nowhere near them. Clearly he was still deluded.

"Please, Asriel, let's just stop fighting… it doesn't have to be like this."

"No! Shut up! I-I don't need ANYONE!"

He focused more magic into a lightning bolt and launched it toward Frisk, who nimbly dodged.

"Haven't you always wanted freedom for monsterkind?"

Asriel, with small tears forming in his eyes, growled at them. His body began to quiver as the human projected more Determination.

"W-what's happening to me…? WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

"I'm not going to fight you. This is as far as our battle will go."

They took a step toward him with their hands raised to show that they had no weapons. The gesture actually frightened Asriel, who backed away in a panic.

"S-STOP IT! Get away from me! I'll rip you apart, understand?!"

He desperately threw dozens of small magic blasts at Frisk, but his aim was being thrown off by his own rapidly-forming tears.

"…do you know why I'm doing this? Why I fight to keep you around?"

Asriel had stopped attacking and was shivering where he hovered, growing more upset.

"It's because you're special, Chara… you're the only one who understands me… the only one who's any fun to play with… I'm not ready for all this to end. I don't know how you're still here, still alive, but… now that you are I can't let you go…"

Frisk looked at him sadly, having no choice but to tell the truth.

"Chara's gone... She's been gone for years. I'm not her."

Their words only seemed to half get through to him, and the Prince began loudly sobbing. He still apparently thought they were his long-lost sister.

"Chara, why won't you just give up?! Why can't we be together again?!"

"…let go, Asriel. The monsters deserve a free life on the surface."

"Not if it means I can't be with you!" he screamed. "Just stop all this fighting… AND LET ME WIN!"

A massive surge of rainbow-colored magic energy erupted from his hands, scorching the air as it came over Frisk like a wave. Their soul's HP was wiped out… but they held on. The human flatly refused to let him beat them here.

1/20 HP.

0.9/20 HP.

0.01/20 HP.

0.0000001/20 HP.

0.000000000000001/20 HP.

They could feel their life hanging by a thread, and even the slightest falter in concentration would lead to Frisk's death. Asriel was shrieking in frustration and sadness as he tried to finish them off. Their Save Point before the battle with him was calling, ready to be loaded, but they never died. Frisk just wanted the battle to end, not out of how much the magic attack hurt but because listening to the Prince's agonized sobs was almost unbearable. Fortunately, he gave up on his attack and quieted down, though still crying softly.

"C-Chara… I… I'm so alone, Chara… so afraid…"

"I know, Asriel."

"I…"

He seemed to have completely surrendered. A white flash enveloped Asriel, and suddenly he looked completely different. The young- Frisk realized that, mentally, he couldn't have been much older than they were- Prince had reverted to his original form. He was, like his parents, a white goatlike creature. His face was far too sincerely gentle to be considered monstrous, and Frisk knew that he wasn't evil at heart. Asriel wore black pants and a green shirt with two yellow stripes running horizontally across it. He was wiping his eyes on one of his sleeves.

"I'm so sorry…" the Prince began in a shaky but much less threatening voice. "I always was a crybaby, wasn't I, Chara?"

He looked them over, and realization finally showed itself in his eyes.

"…I know… you're not actually Chara, are you? She's been gone for decades now. Um… what is your name?"

"I'm Frisk. It's nice to meet you."

Asriel huffed a short laugh and put a hand over his chest.

"I like that name… wow, I haven't felt like this in a long time."

"Felt like what?"

His eyes closed as if he were focusing on the sensation within his soul.

"Felt… happy, and sad, and worried, and excited, and relieved. I couldn't feel emotions as Flowey. But now, with the souls of all the monsters inside me… I have compassion again. Not only that, I can also feel their compassion. It's incredible how much they care about each other, and how much they care about you. You've made such a big impression on them, Frisk."

They nodded.

"And the monsters have made a big impression on me, too. Before I came here I… well, I didn't feel good in life. Now, though, I have friends to look up to."

"They can't wait to see you again. Frisk… I'm sorry. I acted so strange and horrible, I hurt so many people… friends, and family, and bystanders… I can't begin to apologize enough. I understand if you-"

Asriel didn't get to finish, as the human had approached and pulled him into a tight hug. He stiffened, but returned it anyway.

"You weren't yourself as Flowey. I forgive you."

"H-hey, come on… you're gonna make me cry again."

Frisk felt the same way, but stayed composed. The two separated after a few seconds, and the Prince smiled warmly at them.

"Now, the time has come for us to go free. Every monster soul in the underground is inside me, and that's enough to equal a human soul. I can feel them all burning with the same desire. With everyone's power, with everyone's Determination… it's time to end this!"

Asriel turned to face the Barrier, a focused look in his eyes. He stretched his arms out to the sides and released the most extraordinarily powerful blast of soul energy Frisk had ever seen. A multicolored laser pierced through the endless hallway before them, shattering the illusion completely. All of the light in the area appeared to freeze in place as the Barrier cracked apart and vanished. The human couldn't hold back the wide grin on their face when the last chamber of the underground revealed itself behind where the magic field had been. Asriel, the Angel who'd seen the surface, had fulfilled the prophecy stated by the Delta Rune.

The monsters were free.

When he'd finished his final attack, Asriel let out a sigh. The six human souls floated in a hexagon around him, taking on their shadowy projections like before, while the monster souls all sped off to return to their previous locations in the underground. Frisk's own soul detected that Asriel's Determination appeared to be draining from his body.

"It's done… I should go now. Without everyone's souls inside me, I can't stay in this form. In a little while, I'll turn back into a flower. Then I won't be 'myself' anymore."

The human souls stared at him in an almost pitying way.

"Is it all over?" Soul of Patience asked quietly. Soul of Bravery nodded.

"Yes… we can be at peace now, sis."

Soul of Perseverance turned to look at Frisk.

"I'm afraid this is goodbye for us as well. Our Determination has been spent, and our souls will not last much longer without proper bodies."

"Great job out there, Soul of Determination," Soul of Kindness said. "You've done fantastic."

"Take care, kid. We'll always be rootin' for ya, no matter where we are," Soul of Justice added with a salute.

Soul of Integrity gave them a bow in respect.

"Congratulations, child. You've won. Farewell…"

The human souls faded into the darkness. Asriel, watching them go without a word, turned to walk away.

"Well, I'm off too. You're going to do a great job, okay Frisk? Everyone will be right by your side."

"What will you do?"

"I'm going back to the Ruins, to see Chara's grave… I don't think I'm going to leave the underground. Everyone will be safer without me when I turn back into a flower. Can I ask a favor, please?"

Frisk nodded, wiping tears away from their eyes. They dearly wished Asriel could share in everyone's happy ending.

"Take care of Mom and Dad for me, will you? And… don't tell them the truth about Flowey. They don't need to live with that knowledge."

"You got it."

As he walked off, the human began to feel quite dazed from how intense the fight had been. The world turned into a blur of color before their eyes, and a faint voice could be heard calling from somewhere.

 _"Frisk! This is all just a bad dream, wake up!"_


	66. Chapter 63: Last Goodbye

Chapter 63: Last Goodbye

Frisk sat up with a groan, rubbing their forehead. Upon opening their eyes, the first thing they noticed was the crowd of monsters gathered around them- they were laying down on the stone floor of the Barrier room. Toriel was closest, and she looked relieved at their awakening.

"Thank goodness, we were so worried!"

"It felt like you were out forever," Alphys commented. None of them seemed to know about their fight with Asriel.

Undyne was laughing. "Yeah, any longer and I'd have freaked out! Next time you wanna take a nap make sure you tell us first, got it?"

Frisk smiled shakily at their friends, overjoyed to see them again.

"you made papyrus cry like a baby," pointed out Sans with a grin.

"WHAT?! I DID NOT! THE GREAT PAPYRUS DOES NOT CRY! I JUST HAD SOMETHING CAUGHT IN MY EYE SOCKET."

Gaster hummed in thought.

"And what might that have been?"

"TEARS!"

"It's such a relief to see you're okay, Frisk," said Asgore. "I will make you some tea later on, at last… but in the meantime, look! The Barrier is gone!"

Some of the monsters who'd arrived to help with Flowey were inspecting the area where the magic field had been, seeming delighted that the way out was clear. Kid rushed to Frisk's side and began jumping up and down happily.

"YO! We're free! We're all free! This is so exciting!"

"Give them some space, please!" Toriel said, upon which he backed off. "They must be exhausted… though from what, I am not sure."

"None of us remember what exactly happened," Alphys explained. "There was a flower, then everything went white for us. But the Barrier's gone now, so all's well! We're going back to the surface, but only when you're ready."

Mettaton was excitedly talking to Napstablook, even hugging his cousin (the human suspected he was actually a ghost inside a robotic body).

 **"Blooky! We can make our debut in the human world at last!"**

"Yay… heh heh…"

Frisk certainly felt ready to make it out of Mount Ebott with their friends by their side, but there was one last thing they wanted to do first. Most of the monsters were introducing themselves to Toriel, having never met their former Queen. She and Sans in particular seemed to be getting along well, even giddily texting to each other despite only being a few feet apart. The human approached Gaster, who was catching up with Asgore after his long absence.

"Excuse me, Doctor? I'm sorry to interrupt, but could you bring me somewhere?"

"Certainly, I can teleport anywhere in the underground if you so wish."

They nodded happily.

"I want to go to the Ruins."

* * *

Gaster dropped them off at the end of Snowdin Forest, promising to wait by the door until they'd finished whatever errand they had to take care of. Frisk had insisted that it was a personal trip, and wanted to go alone.

The Ruins were practically empty by then, as most of the monsters had learned of the door finally being opened AND the Barrier being destroyed. Needless to say, they'd vacated the area as soon as possible. Despite it being unnaturally silent, Frisk wasn't too bothered, as they knew everyone was happy. Of course, there was always the question of how humans on the surface would receive the monsters, but the child had resolved to be their ambassador long ago if they ever got the chance. And now they did.

Frisk couldn't help but feel like the Ruins were smaller than they remembered. They had grown so much throughout their journey, it was almost surreal to be there again. Passing through Toriel's home, the old puzzles, and the familiar purple stone corridors made them reflect on the time they'd spent underground: nine or ten days, by their count. In barely over a week they had made countless new friends, learned about an entire culture, and helped to save a race from imprisonment, all at the age of twelve. Somehow, it seemed like an eternity that they'd been there.

Soon enough, their destination came into view. It was the flower bed they had first landed on way back when they entered the underground. Frisk had gone there on a hunch, which proved to be correct: Asriel, not yet turned back into Flowey, stood at the edge of the golden field. They had a strong impression that Chara was buried under it.

"Huh? You came to see me, Frisk? Why? You know I can't come back to the surface with you."

The human stood next to him, looking at the flower patch.

"I just wanted to keep you company for a little longer."

Both children were silent for a minute or so, just appreciating the presence of each other. Asriel spoke soon enough.

"Can I ask you something? Why'd you come here? You knew the legend, didn't you? 'Travelers who climb Mount Ebott are said to disappear.' Was it foolishness, or maybe fate…?"

"It was to prove a point that I had no chance of proving, so I guess the first one. But that doesn't matter, because now everyone's happy. I think I even overheard Alphys saying that the Amalgamates are with their families now!"

"…I know why Chara climbed the mountain," Asriel said with a sad expression. "It wasn't for a very happy reason. She HATED humanity, down to her core. She would never tell me why, but… it was a little unsettling to hear how much she truly loathed mankind. Actually, it was her idea to kill herself and give me her soul so we could take six more human souls. Then… then we'd break the Barrier, and take revenge on the humans…"

Frisk put a hand on his shoulder.

"Well, that didn't happen. I do wonder, though, why didn't you attack anyone on the surface? You definitely could've."

He smiled.

"The truth is, control over my body was split between Chara and me. She was the one who wanted to use our full power. At the last second, though, I had a change of heart. Because of that, we died together. I'm actually glad that happened, though… otherwise there'd have been another war between humans and monsters."

Asriel wistfully looked back down at the bed of golden flowers.

"You really are different from her… even though the two of you have similar, uh, fashion senses, I don't actually know how I ever confused you for Chara. Maybe… she wasn't really the greatest person."

That was a massive understatement in Frisk's opinion, but they chose not to say anything.

"I think you're the kind of friend I wish I could've always had."

"Me too…"

His body began to quiver.

"I don't have much time left, so just hear me out. Be careful in the outside world, since it's not always as friendly as it is down here. There are a lot of Floweys up there, you know… not everything can be resolved by just being nice. Whatever you do, don't kill, and don't be killed, okay? That's the best you can strive for. Well… this is it. Goodbye."

Asriel, in a cloud of white vapor, morphed back into Flowey the Flower. He grimaced at his own body, then looked up at Frisk with a clearly forced smile.

"Don't you have something better to do? Just leave me alone."

"…okay. Bye, Asriel. You were a nice friend, even if it was for a short time."

With that, Frisk did an about-face and began the walk back through the Ruins. There was nothing more to be done for Flowey.


	67. Chapter 64: Bring it in, Guys!

Chapter 64: Bring it in, Guys!

Gaster was waiting for Frisk outside in Snowdin Forest. He didn't ask what they'd been up to and simply teleported them back to Asgore's castle, where their friends eagerly awaited the escape from Ebott. The whole city was flooded with monsters, as news of the Barrier being destroyed had spread like wildfire. Still, a path was cleared for Frisk to lead the way. They took a deep breath and gestured for everyone to follow them.

The monsters were nothing short of spellbound by the scenery they beheld upon leaving. They'd emerged from Mount Ebott as the sun began to rise, and the display of light it threw across the landscape captivated them all. Frisk, too, felt truly alive. While the sight of the surface world had been heartbreaking last time without their friends, now they could only think of how wonderful it was to be free of the underground.

"Isn't it beautiful, everyone?" Asgore was telling his subjects as they stared at the sunlit terrain.

"Frisk!" shouted Undyne, stretching her arms in relaxation. "You LIVE with this? The air's so fresh, and the sun is so warm… I could stay here for hours!"

"IS THAT GIANT BALL THE 'SUN' YOU'VE MENTIONED, DAD?" Papyrus asked eagerly. Gaster nodded without a word and put his hands on the shoulders of his two sons, gazing up at the sky.

"i can't believe we're really here," Sans commented. "this is so great…"

Toriel looked over the crowd gradually forming behind them.

"It is beautiful, yes, but we need to think about what comes next."

The King nodded.

"Right you are, Tori… everyone! This is the beginning of a bright new future. An era of peace between humans and monsters, if everything goes well.

"What if they still don't trust us?" someone fearfully called from the crowd.

"Don't worry," Frisk said loudly for all to hear. "I'll be your ambassador to the humans. I'm sure I can convince them that you're nice!"

"YEAH, FRISK WILL BE THE BEST AMBASSADOR! AND I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL BE THE BEST MASCOT! I'LL GO MAKE A GOOD FIRST IMPRESSION!"

Papyrus turned to run off through the path down Mount Ebott, but Undyne yanked on his cape to stop him.

"Hold on there, Paps! Let Frisk lead the way!"

The human laughed brightly, unable to contain their joy. They faced the still growing swarm of monsters coming out of the entrance to the underground.

"I guess you're all excited to explore!"

 _"YEAH!"_

"Well then, everyone follow me!"

* * *

Before they officially set off, Frisk did something they'd been intending to do for a while: they dug individual graves (with help from some of the monsters) and buried the items belonging to the previous humans. Chara's locket and rusty dagger went in the first, Soul of Patience's ribbon and toy knife in the second, Soul of Bravery's tough glove and Manly Bandana in the third, Abigail's notebook and glasses in the fourth, Soul of Integrity's ballet shoes and tutu in the fifth, Soul of Justice's gun and cowboy hat in the sixth, and Soul of Kindness' frying pan and apron in the seventh. The human deemed their symbolic graves suitable enough and gave their departed spirits (or at least those of everyone other than Chara) one last word of thanks.

Considering how many people were traversing the slopes of Mount Ebott together, the trip took much longer than when Frisk had done it alone. They didn't mind at all; having all their friends with them made it the most enjoyable time of their life. Naturally, the human received dozens upon dozens of questions about the surface world, all of which they answered to the best of their ability. They got to speak with many of the monsters they hadn't seen in a while and came to know each of them better.

As the descent continued, Frisk requested to hear more monster stories and wasn't disappointed. A particular favorite of theirs was the origin of Asgore's nickname: King Fluffybuns. Gerson explained that Toriel, when she was still Queen, had accidentally called him that while speaking into a microphone for all of New Home to hear. Neither she nor Asgore seemed bitter about the story, and indeed had a good laugh about it together. Frisk was happy to see they were at least getting along better than previously.

Kid almost never left their side during the trip, cheerfully talking about all the things he could see on the surface. He introduced them to the other monsters in Cool Kids of Snowdin, who were all happy to meet Frisk in person at last. While the human felt the same way, nobody was a closer friend of theirs than Kid- a fact he seemed both proud of and a bit embarrassed by. The inseparable pair shared countless ideas on what to do together now that the surface had been reached.

Sans, Papyrus, and Gaster spent most of their time together, though they would occasionally be seen separated and respectively traveling with Toriel, Undyne, and Alphys. The skeletons were among the most amusing monsters for Frisk to observe, as they all had radically different reactions to everything they came across. Somehow, though, the human could tell that they were all satisfied.

Mettaton and Napstablook explored the nearby parts of the mountain the most, with Shyren the fish monster by their sides. They would later inform Frisk that they planned to become a traveling group of performers, an agenda which the human wholeheartedly supported. Napstablook seemed quite happy, which was an unusual situation for him. Still, his pleasure put even more of a spring in Frisk's step.

Undyne led the former members of the Royal Guard down Mount Ebott, but Alphys was never far behind. The two were already discussing good places to go on dates and never seemed to stop blushing in each other's presence. Every now and then, Frisk would be called over to clarify some aspects of human life (anime and comic books had still left the two with a skewed idea of the surface world), and whenever that happened Monster Kid would excitedly rant about how much they knew.

Mad Dummy and the Ruins Dummy hopped alongside the main group, mostly keeping to themselves. They would occasionally speak to Mettaton and Napstablook, their cousins, but otherwise had nothing to say to anyone.

Grillby and Muffet quietly shared recipe ideas on the way down. The two formed something of a friendly rivalry, engaging in a competition to see who could prepare the best food.

Toriel, about halfway through the second day of the descent, approached Frisk with a question.

"My child, I have something to ask. If you came from this world, do you have somewhere to return to?"

They remembered learning that their parents- their unreasonable, bitter parents- had been sent to jail and never wanted to see them again. Frisk, in hindsight, had no idea who they could have even harmed or why. To their knowledge, none of their neighbors were especially high on their list of "enemies." Of course, they'd been increasingly falling into debt over the last few months, so robbery was a likely motivation.

"No, I have nowhere. I want to stay with you and all the other monsters."

She giggled.

"Really? You are a funny child, Frisk. If you'd said that earlier, none of this would have happened."

"Yep. Guess it's a good thing I took so long to change my mind, right?"

Toriel beamed at them.

"Hee hee hee… very well, I shall do my best to take care of you from now on."

"we'll be with ya too, of course," Sans commented beside her.

"ALL THE WAY!" added his brother. "WE WILL BE TOGETHER FOREVER!"

"You're never getting rid of us, you hear me?" Undyne cheered.

Alphys grinned widely, showing no signs at all of her usual nervousness.

"Yeah! This is a new beginning for everyone!"

Asgore didn't say anything, but nodded in agreement with a similarly pleased look on his face.

"An era of peace... I must say, I've been looking forward to this," Gaster noted.

Mettaton struck a pose. **"Get your photogenic face ready, Frisk. You're going to be a star!"**

Kid was out of control in his excitement.

"Isn't this awesome?! Things are really looking up!"

Frisk gave them all a smile reaching from ear to ear. They'd traversed the underground and dealt with countless perils, but this reward was worth it a hundred times over. Surrounded by their friends- their _family_ \- the human knew that nothing would be too hard to handle. And so they continued down the slopes of Mount Ebott with the prospect of a happy life among monsters ahead of them.

[SAVE FILE UPDATED]

They were Determined to live to the fullest potential.

 **End of Part Seven**

* * *

 **Author's Note: Alright, only one chapter to go now. I figured this would be a good time to say some stuff, this way the epilogue can be rounded off without any other notes from me.**

 **You may have noticed that Chara is no longer a major character listed in this story's details. She's been replaced with Sans due to his larger impact on the story.** ** **After much consideration and some feedback from reviewers, I decided to make this change.  
****

 **What's next, you may be wondering? I'll be continuing my Cave Story adaptation now, so look forward to more updates in the near future. As for Undertale, I'm not quite out of ideas yet. I have two story ideas in mind, one of which will be hinted at next chapter. As for the other one? I'll confirm it for you: when I next return this universe, it'll be with the tale of a different character. A tale of another human who refused to give up, regardless of the outcome. A tale... of _Perseverance._**

 **And now for me to be a huge sap. I'd just like to sincerely thank each and every reader for taking the time to go through this story. Writing it was a blast for me, and I hope I was able to entertain with this adaptation as well as the changes I made to it. This story's almost reached 20 thousand views, which amazes me to no end. Your reviews and support have been highly appreciated, and I can't thank you all enough for providing feedback.  
**

 **With all that out of the way, I'll see you in a few days for the epilogue to this story. Thank you once again, everyone!**

 **-MetroidMan101**


	68. Epilogue: Among Monsters, Among Humans

**Epilogue: Among Monsters, Among Humans**

It had been several days since Asriel destroyed the barrier, and the underground was devoid of activity. The last trace of its inhabitants were gone mere hours after the intense battle between the God of Hyperdeath and the eighth human had concluded, leaving an odd silence over the caverns that had recently been so crowded and bustling. Not a soul remained.

Despite that, Mount Ebott wasn't _completely_ empty.

The Ruins contained the only being of any higher intelligence: a single golden flower, staring blankly at a small patch of similar plants. His expression was as vacant as the rest of the underground, but his mind was definitely not empty. Flowey looked down at the grave of Chara Dreemurr, long-dead sister to the long-dead prince of monsterkind. Had he been able to feel anything, he might have felt mentally exhausted from all that had occurred.

He lacked any real idea of what to do with himself now. Nobody else was around, and with his Determination powers gone he couldn't influence the timelines in any way. There was always Snowdin library… perhaps he could find a book there to keep himself occupied for a little while. Waterfall's marshes of echo flowers could serve as some form of company if he really wanted it.

The problem was, Flowey didn't _want_ company. After everything he'd done in his time as a soulless plant, he lacked the motivation to do anything whatsoever. He just wanted to stay there in the underground until he inevitably wilted, far away from Frisk and the monsters. It would be better that way.

"…?"

His attention was suddenly drawn to a very strong presence in the air. It was some unidentifiable force more powerful than him, any of the monsters, or even Frisk. For a moment he wondered if the ghost of Chara was there with him, but Flowey ruled that out quickly. He was dealing with something else altogether.

"Hi," he said shortly after a while. There was nobody around, and yet somehow he knew that he could be heard.

"I can feel you watching me, you know. Huh… now that I think about it, this sensation's weirdly familiar. Have you been here this whole time, looking down on Frisk's adventure? I guess it was pretty interesting."

He chuckled lightly.

"Who knows? Maybe you even have the potential to see it again. You can erase my memories, their memories even… everything will be reset. I guess I can't stop you from doing that, but to be honest I'm not afraid of it. For some reason, I know things will turn out okay in the end. Before you know it, we'll be right back here together. Heh, this might not even be the first time I've said this."

Flowey sighed, no longer smiling.

"It's not like I have much else to do. If I go to the surface, Frisk will just try and convince me to stay with them. I'm not sure either of us are ready for that, though… maybe one day they'll come back to find me. I can't say for sure; it just seems like a 'Frisk' thing to do."

His eyes traveled over Chara's grave for what had to be the thousandth time that day.

"I wonder how they're all doing up there… why don't you go find out? It's probably more interesting than just watching little old me, you know. Go on, I won't mind. Take care of yourself, my unseen viewer. That's all I have to say."

And with that, Mount Ebott fell silent once more.

* * *

 _Frisk's Journal of Monster Life on the Surface_

 _Tuesday, June 29 201X_

 _"Well, today was another great day! I got to hang out with Kid again, and Mom taught us how to make butterscotch-cinnamon pie. We think we burned it a little, but everyone said they loved it anyway!"_

 _"Guess I should say something else, huh? I'll talk about how we've been doing lately."_

 _"It's been eight days since I helped free the monster kingdom. Everyone's adjusting to living on the outside of Mount Ebott really well, and the best part is that mankind was very welcoming to them. At first I was a little worried that humans would still be afraid of monsters, but it turns out that this WHOLE TIME there's been a monster all alone on the surface, and while I journeyed through the underground he was busy trying to befriend humanity. It clearly worked, because my friends have been received well for the most part. I'm actually gonna meet that monster tomorrow, so I'll write more about him then."_

 _"King Asgore admitted to the deaths of six humans by his command. There was a lot of tension around that, but things seem to be getting sorted out well. I'm actually surprised at how smoothly negotiations have been so far (I helped too!), and even though there's still a long way to go, it looks like peace between the two races is close at hand. Mom's started a school for human and monster children, and quite a few other humans are there! I've already started making more friends."_

 _"Alphys isn't the Royal Scientist anymore, since Mom fired her after she confessed to her experiments on the Amalgamates. Now she works as Doctor Gaster's lab assistant again. Sans is there too, but he hasn't changed much. At least, on the outside he hasn't. I can see how happy he really is, though!"_

 _"Papyrus is the Captain of the Royal Guard, and he's super proud of himself even though the Guard was disbanded once we escaped from the mountain. Still, no need to rain on his parade. He's also the official mascot of the monster kingdom, and people everywhere seem to like him. We still get to hang out often, though!"_

 _"Mettaton, Napstablook and Shyren are on tour across the kingdom. Their shows are a huge success, and they promised they'd perform just for my friends and me once they get back. I can't wait to see them again."_

 _"Undyne's a gym teacher at Mom's school, and she loves her job. Sometimes she gets a little, um, into it, but most of the students like her! The human ones especially think she's cool. She's gotten a lot stronger; now she can bench press TWELVE kids at once!"_

 _"The Amalgamates are living happily with their families, or rather the families of the monsters making them up. I still wish there was a way to get them back to normal, but… well, some things can't be changed. I wonder how Flowey's doing, by the way. Is he still underground, or has he decided to come to the surface after all? I haven't seen him since we left, and I don't know what he's been up to. Regardless, he seems to have stopped causing trouble."_

 _"My parents are still in jail, and they still want nothing to do with me. That's okay, though. I have a better family now. Besides, if going through the whole underground and making friends with an entire kingdom isn't 'brave' enough for them then I guess nothing is."_

 _"You know… I've changed a lot over my journey. It wasn't an easy adventure, but was determined enough to see it through. At first, all that mattered to me was getting to those red trees at the top of Mount Ebott. I didn't care THAT much about monsters, even if I did spare them. Now, though, I can see how wrong I was. They are my friends, after all, and I wouldn't want that to change for any reason."_

 _"Well, I guess I should go to bed now. I've got a big day tomorrow. Like I said, I'm gonna meet that lone monster who was up here making friends with humanity, and after that I have a cooking lesson with Undyne (we're going to try making spaghetti again). Then I'm gonna visit Doctor Gaster and Alphys, and…"_

 _"Hahaha, I'm rambling. Anyway, I have a lot to do. But I don't mind that; spending more time with my friends is the best way I can imagine being busy. So… this is it, then. Tomorrow, my adventure with monsters continues."_

The bedroom's door opened softly, and the human child looked up. Even in the semidarkness of the room, they could make out the shape of Toriel in the doorway. She came closer, her gentle face illuminated by Frisk's small lamp.

"Oh, I did not realize you were still awake."

They smiled at her and gestured to their journal.

"Just finishing up my list of today's events. Shouldn't you be in bed too?"

Toriel showed them what she was holding: a plate with something brown sitting on it.

"I wanted to leave this for you as a surprise for the morning. It's the last slice of butterscotch-cinnamon pie that you and Kid baked earlier. You two made quite a mess in the kitchen, you know."

"Hey!" Frisk protested, giggling a bit, "It's not our fault he doesn't have any arms. How was he supposed to crack those eggs without getting some on the table?"

Their mother, also smiling, ruffled their hair lightly.

"I believe that was _your_ job. Either way, the pie turned out wonderful. I might have to try harder on my next one, if the two of you are going to outdo me like this."

Both of them burst out laughing for a few seconds before Toriel spoke up again.

"You really should go to sleep now, Frisk. There's another exciting day ahead of you."

"Fine, but only if you promise to as well."

She leaned forward and kissed their forehead.

"That sounds fair to me. Sleep well, my child."

"You too, Mom."

They gave her a short wave as she left the room and closed the door behind her. The human looked at the slice of pie, sitting on the nightstand beside their bed. It would be there in the morning for them, yet another bonus to their new life. Smiling contentedly, they jotted down one final note in their journal before turning off the lamp and curling up under the covers.

 _"Good night."_

 _-Frisk, the Soul of Determination_

* * *

 _ **The End**_


End file.
